A Dance of Bravery
by JasmineDragon22
Summary: When Sakura's crippled father is recruited for war, she fears for his life and disguises herself to takes his place. But will her fear and dislike of the male species be noticeable in a camp full of men? What will happen when she falls for a man she's supposed to hate? She can practically smell disaster... From 33LoLillie-Chan33, adopted by ME :)
1. Chapter 1

**Hello Readers! I know...some of you are wondering WTF you're writing another story and you haven't finished Becoming One! Yeah i know...but i found this story and when the Author said she was discontinuing and giving it away...i couldn't resist! I read it and fell in love. It's such a creative take on the general Mulan storyline that i just had to have it. So this is my tribute to 33LoLillie-Chan33. For those of you who have started reading her version...some things are the same and some are different. Anyways i hope you enjoy! **

**As for an update on Becoming One...I'm almost finished with the next chapter. Considering i'm busy with my Internship i'll probably be posting monthly updates. I know totally sucks considering i used to do weekly but i just don't have the time anymore :( But let me know what you think!**

* * *

**SMASH!**

_That was mama's favorite vase_, Sakura realized as she cowered in a back room. She had to stay still…she had to stay quiet. Someone was coming to save her.

"Come out come out wherever you are..." a dark voice taunted her.

**RIP!**

And those were the blankets mama had embroidered herself. Whoever this man was they were trying to send a message…and succeeding.

"You can't hide forever little girl..."

**CRASH!**

He was getting closer. The fine tinkling of that sounded with the crash could only mean china. Probably the china tea set Sakura had bought for her mother.

"Now, tell me where your papa has hidden my things..." the voice growled menacingly.

_What things?! _Sakura could only bath in her own fear. She stared at this strange man's shadowy movements from behind the wooden panels, hoping the dark shadows would hide her existence. He was so close, and any minute he would be in the same room as her.

_Must stay still, must stay quiet,_ she chanted to herself.

It had been mere minutes ago when Sakura returned home with her nursemaid Lao to prepare for bed. It was late and her mother and father were out discussing "things" with an old man with white hair.

And then her nursemaid screamed. On the floors past the main gates lay blood. And the headless body of a female. Sakura stared in shock and she didn't know what she was supposed to feel. But when Lao pushed her away, yelling at her to run, she only reacted and ran. In front of Lao's frail form stood three men with frightening smiles and that pushed Sakura to run as fast as she could. She ran as fast as her little six year old feet could take her. Passed the rooms with torn rice paper doors, passed a corridor that seemed overrun with a liquid that she didn't want to think about and passed the destroyed meeting room she had often sat in.

She ran till she reached her mom and dad's room. Her feet led her across the wooden floorboards until she reached the large wooden closet. The walls were extra tall so that mama would be able to hang her clothing inside without worrying about dust or the hassle of folding elaborate garments. It was at the end of the room and was similar to a wooden wall except that it had even vertical spaces. Her father's clothes hung here and since he didn't use as much of the space as her mother Sakura found it easy to crawl into the large nook at the back. But what Sakura forgot in her moment of panic was that her father used this nook to store their most precious heirlooms. Thinking on her feet the small girl surrounded herself with the precious artifacts hoping that the scary man would only see the trinkets and miss her completely.

He was in the room, walking towards the closet. Perhaps she would be safe back here in the corner? Would he be able to fit back here? The nook was as high as the room itself.

The burly man produced some sort of weapon larger than twice is head and it glinted in the subtle moonlight. With a heaving gasp, he smashed the now glowing weapon into edge wooden bars. A maniacal smile lit up his face when the walls on that side collapsed. He sniffed the air.

_Aaah…the scent of a cowering young child. Better yet, it's female._ He would enjoy his revenge on this Haruno as the payment for her father's debt. That pathetic man who stole his dear Kiyari. Who took the jewel scrolls he had inherited. Who had tried to kill him! He smirked, one side of his gruesome face showing more teeth than the other. Did she really think she could hide from him? _Foolish child._ Her frightened energy was as bright as the day light; he had merely been toying with her earlier.

Sakura could barely breathe as she watched him advance towards her. She thought she was safe, and that he would not notice her, until he crouched and smirked as their eyes met.

"Found you," He tore the wooden panels away with his bare fist.

Sakura looked up at him in terror. She didn't like this. Not one bit. This was the kind of man used in the tales mama had told her. Tales of men who preyed on little girls. Men who were never found and only known through the bodies of the blue lipped girls who were left in the woods with their skirts torn and blood on their legs. But she couldn't move. She just stared on helplessly as he grabbed a fist full of her brilliant pink hair and dragged her out of the room. She threw her little fists against him, trying to get free. She shrieked and yelled and prayed and begged to be let go and still he would not.

When she grabbed an ornamental dagger to stab him he merely swung his mace at her, forcing the dagger out of her hands and deep bloody gouges cut her delicate skin. Sakura just stared at her hands in shock. Not once had she ever been hurt. Not once had she seen her own blood. And then the pain came. Hot and sharp it travelled through her hands and wrist. For what seemed like eternity, the blood ran and she could only cry while holding her hands close to her chest. She didn't see where she was going, staying absent to the world until her hazy mind snapped to attention upon hearing another male voice.

"So the boss caught a cutie eh?"

She stared, two other men were in the tea room. One with rust colored hair the other with brown. So the man who found her was the "boss". And then it sunk in. it wasn't just one man that would touch her…it would be more! She started screaming again trying to get free.

**KA-THWACK!**

She fell head first onto the floor. She tried to grasp her head to keep it from spinning soaking her hair in blood.

"Break her hands and feet. We don't want her getting away. And untie that thing of hers." The boss ordered pouring himself a drink.

She just stared up at the rust haired man in horror, _No...he wouldn't…he wouldn't...he...no!_

Her lips opened up in a silent scream. There was fire burning up her arms and legs, unrelenting and merciless. Without realizing it, her mind was forcing her body to push out chakra as a plea for help. And then she fainted, consumed by a black abyss that calmed her and took away her pain.

* * *

Sakura opened her eyes and took in the pure darkness around her. It was as if she was suspended in mid-air. The space seemed thin almost ethereal.

"Hello? Is anybody there?" Her voice echoed timidly in seemingly never ending dark.

**Hey there ME!**

Sakura reeled back in shock. A huge white…something that looked like her was right in front of her, only she was at least a few hundred times her size.

**I am not! I just happened to be a bit bigger because I own this whole place duh!**

Just who was this crazy person? Looking like her and talking NOT like her.

**I am you! **The being responded cheerily, hands on her hips.

Apparently, it could read minds as well.

The being sighed, **you are in your own mind. I am you. Like…your split personality or something. Get it? Think of me as your conscience but in human form! Kinda like you're possessed**, she added cheekily.

POSSESSED?!

**Ouucchhh!** The white figure like thing covered her ears. **Don't talk so loud!**

Er...sorry?

**Much better. Now, I'll talk to you some other time. Meanwhile, you need to worry about keeping your clothes on, **she said with a small hint of sympathy in her voice.

Huh? Wait... I still have questi-

* * *

Sakura slowly opened her eyes. What had happened? Was it some kind of odd dream-world phenomenon?

_What? So she was in her head now? NOOO! She didn't want to be crazy!_

**Shut up! You aren't crazy. Maybe a little stupid…**

_Am not!_

**So the little girl has some sass eh?**

_What's that supposed to mean?_

**Nothing...I'm just glad you aren't a complete goody-do-good-whatever-you-say-mama and daddy's-girl.**

_I am NOT!_

**Hey! Noise level! What am I supposed to think? All you ever say is yes mom...of course dad...whatever you say mom...**

_Okay…I get it...so what are you anyway?_

**Funny how you get more out spoken when you talk with me eh?**

_Huh? I-I am not...I-I just..._

**Yeah, yeah…anyway, like I said…I am you. I'm just the part of you that actually admits that she hates wearing dresses!**

_B-but...I…_

**So stand up for yourself for once my Kami-sama! And say you don't like it…**

_I…_

**And since you're awake can you take care of that bastard who is taking of your clothes?**

_MY CLOTHES!_

She broke out of the trance she had been in and realized that yes, her clothes were gone. All that was left was the under layers of her kimono and her underwear.

"So the little girl wakes up eh?"

That voice had come from behind her. His breath was hot against his ear followed by his tongue. She squirmed away from the disgusting feeling only to he held still by his hands…that were officially wandering in places that they shouldn't be.

She screamed, "LET ME GO! LET ME GO! STOP TOUCHING ME!"

"Oh I will do more than that little girl. Much more than that..." he purred and continued his defilement

"Iss pretteh 'mazing thad theh boss h'ain't tak'n 'er cloths arll off eh?" the brown haired man slurred.

"Get that tooth fixed up Kuzo. Can barely hear what you're saying," the rust haired thug growled.

"Ah said thad 'ah thogh't boss was gon'ta haf 'er wih, ya know wha t'aim sayenng?" He continued while making obscene gestures.

"Oh yes. He is well known for all those ahem, 'blue-lipped girls'," the other leered.

"Thas rait Thehgoji! Boss'es a plehtg'ofshile eh?"

"The names Fukoji you idiot, and it's pronounced. Pedophile…peh- dou- file!"

Sakura's eyes widened...she may be young, but she was quite known for loving the library. As such she knew exactly what that word meant and right now she wished she didn't.

"So the little sweetie knows who I am, eh?" His hands moved down south.

At this point she was so subdued by her nerves that she had already forgotten about her Inner Sakura who would probably have given her some good advice.

"You like it don't you? You do? Oh dear…I can't reach you well enough though...hmm…"

_She just stayed still._ _He's stronger than you. Any movement will just make him hurt me worse._

"This should do it!" And he tore of her beautiful silk under layer, now she was completely exposed. His leer grew more sinister as his eyes roved over her soft porcelain skin. Sakura whimpered but continued to stay still. She felt so strange. It wasn't like when she dreamed of a monster coming to steal her soul. Or like that time when it had been dark and she thought she had seen a big black figure. This was unknown. So unknown and scary and she didn't know what to do.

She had never known what had actually happened to the girls in the woods, or why they had blood on their legs and only their legs. She had always wondered what had happened because her mother never told her. She only knew it was bad. But now, she thought she was going to find out in the worst way possible.

By experiencing it herself.

His hands were caressing her bare thighs.

_No…no this can't…this can't be happening. Mama! Papa! _

**Scream you idiot! Scream and kick and just do WHATEVER YOU CAN!**

_B-But…he…he's stronger…_

**JUST BLOODY MOVE ALREADY!**

Inner's loud voice jolted her into action. She began screaming and kicking like a cat on bath day.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH! OTOU-SAAAAAAAAAAAAN! OKAA-SAAAAAAAAN!" She screamed as loudly as she could, her high-pitched voice causing the boss above her to wince.

"Shut the hell up!" He backhanded her, slamming her head against the wooden floor.

"NO!" She couldn't give up now, "LET ME GO!"

"You little bitch..." He growled and turned her around whilst pressing her face down onto the floor, scraping her now exposed sensitive skin. He grabbed a blade and pressed it threateningly against her back. "You still want to disobey me? Hmm?"

She stiffened. "Please don't...d-don't..."

"Pity…all this lovely skin…" He began etching patterns on her back, "You are going to scar quite nicely," he smirked.

Her back erupted into flame and she tried to wiggle away. But it was futile; he had her pinned to the ground. The cuts were long and shallow, not deep enough for her body to go into shock.

She tried to bear with it, biting her lips so he would stop chuckling at her discomfort. Then she felt the pain ebbing away.

_Inner?_

**Hey sweetie. I'll be helping you out ok? Hang in there... It'll just take a minute…**

_Okay…_

Seeing as she wasn't giving him much of a reaction anymore, he pursed his lips and stabbed her hard with the inch long blade, and dragged it slowly down the side of her back.

Sakura's eyes bulged but didn't scream or whimper. Unfortunately it didn't stop the tears from escaping her eyes. Strangely enough, she couldn't feel the pain…yet...

It seemed that she spoke too soon. This was worse than her broken limbs. Worse than the wounds on her hands. Worse than the backhand she had been given. She wouldn't be able to keep quiet. She only wanted scream and let the pain out.

**Shush! Don't give him the satisfaction of hearing your pain.**

The blade twisted.

She was still quiet…but only barely. Blood coated her lips from being bitten so hard. She could feel something warm coiling around, numbing the pain to keep the worst of it at bay.

Fire continued to course up and down and around her back. Then she felt it go lower…and lower…

And then everything stopped. The snickering of the two other men. The movements of the blade. A pregnant silence filled the room along with a burning hatred. The dense feeling made Sakura cringe wanting to flee from whatever furious being had entered the room.

"Step away from my daughter."

_DADDY!_ She rejoiced inside her head.

"Well now, isn't this a surprise. The damn Haruno is back early," The boss intoned dryly.

"Dokiru! What are you doing? Why did you hurt her?!"

_MAMA!_

"My dear Kiyari," he stood smiling sweetly at the woman, "I remember when you used to call me Dokiru-_kun_. What a shame..."

"You were the one who tried to kill my father. You were the one who was dishonorable," her mother bit back.

"Yari-chan, stop conversing with filth. It is not becoming," her father ordered.

"Of course. Gomen Kyodu-kun..." Sakura could recognize the teasing lilt of her mother's voice.

"Enough talk…unless of course you want to prolong dear Sakura's suffering…" the boss, Dokiru, dropped his knife innocently scraping the soft flesh of Sakura's naked hip.

Everything happened incredibly fast. One moment the man had been taunting her father, which no man should ever be stupid enough to do considering he was the head of the ANBU. And then the next moment he and his two friends were against the wall of the house with steel wires around them.

"Hmmph! Barely a Chunin and he tries to fight with me," her father growled holding the two men tightly.

"Sakura-chan!" Her mother rushed over to her started healing her. Her mother was no medic-nin but she had a well enough control over her chakra to be able to separate it and partially heal her daughter. She had taken basic courses as a girl and luckily kept up with the practice.

Sakura just smiled. She was safe and her parents were here to protect her. Her body, after the traumatic experience, finally decided it could rest. The adrenaline left her body encouraging relaxation and sleep.

As peaceful darkness began to take over she made one final promise to herself, _I will never be helpless again._

* * *

"One more…lap...just one…more…"

"Add ten to whatever you are doing Sakura."

"Ugh…Okay!" she shouted at her father.

"And once you are finished add another two stones to each of your limbs and start again," he ordered from the porch where he sat drinking tea.

"Argh…" she groaned. Her legs were getting tired, if she didn't get a break soon they were going to start to spasm.

It had been ten years since the incident and Sakura had blossomed into a beautiful, if not a rather brash young lady of sixteen. She disliked and no longer wore floor length kimonos and had a rather unhealthy dislike and fear for all things male.

Contrary to her mother's speculation of her dislike of skirts, it wasn't entirely because she had the experience of it being ripped off. Something she was obviously not eager to experience again. But Sakura could not train in kimonos and found them to be a hassle. But she could not be bothered to tell her mother that. Besides she was a good daughter and wore them when needed.

And as to her dislike for males…well she knew them a selfish, pig-headed lot that only wanted three things in life: money, power, and sex. Almost becoming a blue-lipped girl when she was young was not much help either. Her experiences as a child definitely reshaped her view of men. The only one she trusted was her father.

But she had found out about two years back that she could tolerate chatting with the occasional man. If her parents hosted a dinner she would be polite and lady-like, much to her mother's pleasure. But the moment an interested male tried to approach her with even a hint of mischievous intent, she would immediately put them in their place…she would erase the memory of such encounter with a high level medical jutsu and no one was the wiser. It wasn't that she did that to every man she encountered. In reality she has only used that jutsu twice and both times in private. Most men and young men she met were respectful but that was to be expected with their noble birth. To be caught acting disgraceful with a woman would shame them and their families which of course would not be tolerated. But if an anxious young man tried to come onto her in the streets she never hesitated to send that unfortunate soul sailing through the air and out of the village. The male population definitely learned quickly to not be deceived by the petite pink haired lady's exotic beauty and to never get on her bad side.

And with being a young woman of sixteen Sakura started noticing some differences in her behavior that she, on a good day tolerated and on a bad day cursed herself in the most colorful language that never left her lips. She actually started finding men attractive. What a betrayal to her ideals! Men were nothing but pigs but she, on more than one occasion, happened to be present when some of the young men were training…shirtless…and she could help but ogle. Would she ever admit it out loud…never. But even she couldn't hide it from herself that she definitely wasn't immune to their impressive physiques. Training for the shinobi corps definitely brought out the best of them physically.

As for women, she did have one good friend, which she cherished and defended whenever propriety allowed. She wasn't going to go on disgracing her friends and have their families take it out on them. No her volatile behavior was reserved just for her. But in all reality, most of the noble women were far too concentrated on powdering their faces and marrying a Hyuuga or an Uchiha or one of those other males in the high ranking clans anyway. This practice Sakura always inwardly and occasionally outwardly scoffed at. Those women were weak and easy to take advantage of. A position that Sakura would never find herself in as long as she lived. And she'd be damned if she let her future husband _ever_ push her around.

_Ugh…I need to stop thinking about this before I vomit._

**What? You know it's going to happen soon anyway.**

_Exactly why I don't want to think about it. I don't want to know what sort of ugly, demeaning, stubborn, and utterly prideful man I may end up getting stuck with._

**You're just in a bad mood. Once you've calmed down I believe we can have a rational conversation on the subject.**

…_Maybe…_

"Finished!" Sakura called out immediately bending over trying to catch her breath.

"Go and do five hundred sets of lifting that rock," Kyodu ordered not even looking up.

Sakura's jade eyes widened and her jaw went slack looking at her next obstacle, "It's twice my height father!"

"The problem?" he looked up at her expectant.

"Nothing…" she sighed before slowly trudging up to her next object. She knew he meant it in the best way.

Her father had taken a severe blow to his leg and became crippled in an attack about a month after the incident. The doctors, and her mentor Lady Tsunade, said he was lucky to keep his leg but his life as a shinobi was over. He retired honorably, and now only attended to his duties as a noble in the Hokage's court. While her family was not a member of the honorable clans such as the Hyuuga or Uchiha, they were wealthy, and a mix of civilian nobles and shinobi. And Kyodu had no qualms with teaching Sakura the ways of the shinobi when she had asked him to. The blue-lipped incident ten years ago was more than enough reason for him to train his daughter.

And if there was one thing that she absolutely admired about her father, he was not intent on marrying her off or telling her to watch her mouth and stay in her place. She loved that about him. He let her be free to speak her mind and in turn it helped her learn and grasp concepts that might have been impossible were it not for his influence. He was however, adamant that she train until she couldn't move anymore.

They had started off small; a rock that weighed no more than five pounds and weights for each of her limbs about three pounds each. She was to run forty laps a day and do a hundred push-ups and then after that they would spend the next half a day learning different styles of taijutsu. Although her father could not leap and jump as he used to, he could still smack her arms with his cane if they were too low or high and would, quite literally, smack her into position. She improved fast not wanting to feel the cane's sting and then listen to her mother scold her father about the violent training. As a woman who was now of age to be married she had to look her best at all times; something Sakura always rolled her eyes at…in private of course. She would never disrespect her mother in that way. She knew she only meant well considering the society they lived in. Noble daughters were married away and on a rare occassion the man a woman would marry would come to love her and she him. But usually noble marriages only bred mutual respect and never love.

But every day she would train in the morning and would spend the afternoon learning how to separate her chakra from her life-force.

"Sakura, breathe in and out. Focus on your energy, feel it move within you. Now, give me a water-dragon!"

She breathed in, listening to the energy that coursed through her like music flowing in the wind. She felt her chakra leave her life-force and instantly react to the environment. The more chakra a shinobi could separate from your life force…the more power, control, and large ninjutsu's a shinobi could perform.

"And don't you dare say its name!"

Sakura had showed a high potential in the control of her chakra just like her father. Being able to completely separate it from her life force on her first try and was able to send it to all parts of her body on the second try. It was a well-known fact that the best of the shinobi had no need to speak out their techniques, although they tended to use overly-exaggerated movements or at times would use a hand sign. Sakura had control that was good enough that she had no need for any of the three. If she willed it to happen then it did. Even the most disciplined ANBU and the legendary medic Tsunade didn't have chakra control that was that refined. But Sakura wasn't one to boast…at least not to her friends or male company. Her power was her own secret kept strictly between her and her family.

She was quite adept at almost all the elements. The only element that needed a hand sign was fire. This was because in order to make fire, one needed to have control both the inside and outside energies then push it together and create a hot friction that would spark fire. In the beginning, she had needed to be in a snake stance, a foot in front and one stretched to the back holding equal weight and her hands would be in the tiger sign, and could only do a fire ball through the mouth. Now she able to hold a hand sign on one hand and create a fireball with the other. She would concentrate her chakra into her words while imagining the tiger sign and then waving both hands in a ridiculous motion to create fire. And even then she had needed to be in a snake stance which aggravated her greatly. But she had come far since all she needed was a single handed sign or a murmur of the words. Fire was a stubborn element, no wonder the Uchiha's specialize in fire considering they were the most prideful, bullheaded not to mention an honorable clan in Konoha…as well as high ranking members of the Hokage's court.

She had started her shinobi training a month after the incident and had started the training of her chakras at the age of eight. Now it was merely refining the way to fight while using the elements; which is why it frustrate her that she still needed the snake stance. Of course, she could do other things like running up a tree for hours, standing upside down with only her fingers, and sparing with her father's chakra string controlled puppet on water. You know the easy stuff. And we're not even going to talk about genjutsu…with her chakra control it was almost a joke, although she had yet to test her skill against an Uchiha sharingan. And that was not going to happen anytime soon considering that she would never get the opportunity to ever train with one.

"Sakura, I only told you to stop the bleeding," her father admonished.

"Sorry...I couldn't help it. I just wanted to try out this technique," she started to explain her hand over her arm.

"Where did you even get it from? All I ever taught you was how to stop bleeding and how to regenerate the skin, not how to regrow a bone and nerves and every other miniscule thing in there. How did you even know how?"

"It was a scroll that Tsunade-sama gave me."

"The matchmaker?"

"She is also a renowned healer..." she reminded him it a slight glower.

A soft hissing sound interrupted their talk as a purple skinned diamond back snake poked his head out of Sakura's sleeve. He slithered down her arms towards where she was healing the cut on her arm. His tongue shot out tasting the air around her bloodied arm.

"I thought I told you to keep that snake away from your training," her father admonished glaring at the purple fiend. He didn't really mind that she kept it as long as it didn't interfere with her training or terrorize her mother.

The snake was one of her favorite pets. She had healed her snake a few years ago when she was just learning how to heal skin. It hadn't been easy and she hadn't told her father but she had tried to duplicate its cells. And she had failed resulting in a ridiculously long snake that also had her chakra in it, and believe it or not, the snake could make itself bigger or smaller. Its typical size was about half her height and it was often wrapped around her upper arm or back. It had stuck with her since she healed it and she had named him Kigechu.

Often, just to shock her mother, her snake would jump out during dinner, grab a bite of fish, and jump back in. This often resulted in her mother looking very annoyed, but she said nothing as the snake's venom, she had found out once while bathing with Sakura, was very good for the skin. But then she realized that this only applied to her and that was probably due to the chakra bond. One poor maid who had tried getting the venom from the water for herself had gotten a few alarming rashes and had nearly suffocated from foaming at the mouth.

Her only other favorite pet was a lovely stallion that had more muscle than a tiger and a coat of fur so dark he blended into the night. Strangely enough, his snout was white as snow and had a few black lines on it. His mane was the same colors as his midnight coat and would shimmer beautifully under the light of a full moon. Sakura's favorite rides were the ones at midnight where she could fully admire the beauty of her stallion. She had taken to calling him Yoru. He had a dislike of snakes too, and had nearly trampled on dear Kigechu when they first met. They were sort of best friends now in an odd animal companionship sort of way. She didn't even try to understand it.

But they were her best friends and the bond the three of them shared could never be broken. This was evident by the fact that Kigechu never left her body and Yoru would never let anyone else ride him.

* * *

"Sakura stop rolling up your hakama!" Her mother shouted, "And put your hippori back on! I don't care how hot you feel!"

The one thing Sakura never liked to do, and abhorred with every fiber of her being, was to expose a single part of her body. Perhaps it was because of the incident or perhaps it was merely because women were not supposed to expose any part of their body anyway. But in public the only skin anyone would ever see exposed on her was her face and hands.

Sakura's training attire consisted of a pair of steel ended bindings that made for easy access at least to her. Not for her mother. A meshed lined short sleeved steel top shirt went over her bindings. The hakama she wore was an adaptation. There were steel ends on the sides and the ties ended up somewhere at her waist. The pant legs were a narrow cut and had ties threaded in at the bottom for when she trained and decided to tie it up on the occasion that she actually got hot, of course, her father yelled at her for this because she was exposing herself. She never understood that complaint…she was in her own backyard training where only her family would even see her. On top of this she wore a cropped hippori that had a thick tie that went in the opposite way at the bottom and had narrow sleeves.

At home, when she was not training, she kept her mesh top and bindings on along with the hakama. But over it, she wore a thin connected sleeved kimono that had slits up the sides of it. However, unlike the typical kimono, it tied the way a traditional hippori would. The hakama was a shade of true black and her kimono was a dark green while the band on it to tie was a flowery black and gold pattern.

When she went out, she would be forced to tie portions of her long pink hair into little braids and patterns and she found it thoroughly annoying. She also had to wear a, what was in her opinion flashy light peach and gold ko-uchigi on top of it that she found horribly troublesome. Not to mention hot under the Konoha sun.

"The dinner that you made tonight was very well done Sakura. As is the Kosode and Samue that you have sewn together. However, your weaving skills require some work, and so do your embroidery skills."

"Mom..." Sakura softly sighed. She hated this side of herself…she would much rather train.

Sakura had a busy childhood. While training in the shinobi art, she had also been learning the ways of a woman. What frustrated her mother to no end though was the fact that she had calloused hands and scars on her body. Not to mention the fact that she had also deemed any nobleman her mother had tried to set her up with as a, "chauvinistic, power-hungry, and so bloody full of air it's amazing they can live on the same land!" Oh that line infuriated her mother to no end when she first spoke them; hence why her colorful language was now kept to herself.

Her mother wished she knew where Sakura had gotten words like these. She also wished she knew why Sakura did not enjoy being in the company of the other more refined girls. Even if she didn't enjoy their company per se, it would be beneficial to always have those connections in court. She recalled Sakura saying once when talking about making connections, "The Yamanaka girl is forever sticking her chest out against the Watanabe, Genji, or Mushi just to compare. They forever primp in front of an ornate mirror they can barely hold, and all they ever talk about are which men to marry! Oh I want an Uchiha, oh I want a Hyuuga, or oh I'll take a Sarutobi or even Namikaze. How boring of a life is that?!" Kiyara only sighed and shook her head as her daughter's stubbornness.

And Sakura disliked being a noble herself, or at least the concept of it. The only thing she appreciated about it was she didn't have to clean the house and the fact that she did not need to put her clothing on by herself. It was still her duty to make food for her father and mother, and when she had a husband it would most likely be her duty to prepare food for her family as well. So how did the straightforward brash darling survive? Her mother had always had the duty of cleaning the main family rooms, serving food for honored guests and picking out the clothing for her main family as well so Sakura had little to no practice. Not to mention her father took her side far too often in matters like this and she usually got out of any practice her mother tried to put her through in favor of training. Those arguments were increasing recently though considering she was now of age and had no training in being a proper house wife. And she would obviously need the training. While her family was wealthy they were not as high on the noble list ergo her marrying into the upper families like the Uchiha and Hyuuga were slim to none. Not that she cared, as long as Tsunade matched her up with someone who could respect her she probably wouldn't care if he turned out to be a humble farmer. She could picture herself with someone who would mind her boundaries and Tsunade did know of her past…she would be kind with whoever she would pick for Sakura.

With that in mind Sakura finished the dishes then turned in for the night.

* * *

The next morning Sakura found herself wandering to the house of the only friend that she liked, Hyuuga Hinata. Hinata was the only woman her age that Sakura felt comfortable with discussing the opposite sex. The main reason was she knew the Hyuuga heiress was never one to gossip. Sakura admired her shy and bashful nature, probably because Hinata was so different from her. It was almost like a breath of fresh air being in her presence. Hinata also wasn't one of those women who judged Sakura as competition, both women being natural and exotic beauties found common ground in their dislike for excessive primping and powdering. As such, she would often sit with Hinata and discuss the blonde Namikaze prankster who the navy haired heiress always had a secret crush on. And on a really good day both women would happily stare at any and all young men who walked in their line of vision…especially if they just _happened_ to sit where they had the absolute perfect view of the training grounds.

One of the perks of visiting Hinata at her home was that it was a popular place for high ranking clan members to train, namely Hyuuga Neji who would spar with Uchiha Sasuke and Sakura would happily stare at their sweaty and muscled bodies discretely. Poor Hinata also turned as red as a tomato but would not take her eyes away from the entrancing scene. Sakura knew she found them as beautiful as she did, especially their taijutsu spars, or when Sasuke practiced kenjutsu…mmmm…very graceful. And once, she had met the eldest son of the Uchiha clan. She had been rather surprised that she was not annoyed by him at all. Nothing about him spoke of arrogance or cockiness. Instead, he merely seemed confident and had ignored all the simpering females of the Hyuuga house with an ease she found she liked. He was definitely interesting which, in Sakura's book, was a giant red flag. Every male…and she meant every…always pissed her off in some form or another. Either they ogled at her body, which automatically put any male on her shit-list, or treated her like any other meek, brainless female, which of course she had to fix as soon as possible. It was rare to find any man that treated her equally without even knowing her. And that was dangerous since she didn't know how to treat him.

When her mother questioned her frequent visits Sakura easily explained that she enjoyed Hinata's company as well as the company of those high ranking younger boys. She could still vividly recall her mother grinning like a maniac and never hesitated to make sure Sakura spent quality time with the Hyuuga girl in hopes of her catching some clan boy's eye. And she also made sure Sakura did not disgrace herself in front of such influential people. Sakura readily agreed…she certainly wasn't going to jeopardize her nice view or the pleasant friendship with Hinata.

Knocking politely on the clan gate, Sakura was instantly let in after informing the guard that she was there to see Hinata. By now they knew to expect her visit, every Wednesday Hinata and Sakura would meet for brunch and chat. She was led through the wide hallways she calculated to be at least five feet wider than her own and reaching a height of ten feet tall. The walls were expertly decorated in traditional Japanese mixed with the clan crest and colors. Her journey though was not long as Hinata was expecting her and had set up tea on the veranda as was their tradition. It was a beautiful and spacious location that both women admired. Sure the male view was great but it also had a stunning view of the award winning Hyuuga gardens. The wood deck was lined with tall white columns and greenery grew in a circular motion up the pillars. In spring the bees would pollenate the variety of flowers making the area richly fragrant. This was definitely their spot.

"Ohayo Hinata-sama," Sakura stopped at the edge of the table offering the heiress a small bow of respect. She had definitely earned Sakura's respect and was the only woman, besides her mother, she would willingly die for.

"You are very welcome and please call me Hinata-san."

Sakura smirked lightly as the woman who extended her hand indicating for Sakura to sit with her.

"You know I have to be formal at first Hinata-san," Sakura gently smoothed her formal yukata properly while Hinata began to pour the tea.

"I know," she smiled shyly, "And if I could have it my way I would drop off all honorifics between us."

Sakura hummed in agreement, "As would I but alas…"

Hinata smiled in understanding, "But alas."

Setting the tea pot down Hinata easily refit the sleeve of her kimono into the proper place. Sakura pitied the poor girl for the reason that she was always forced into wearing a kimono whereas Sakura was lucky enough not to wear one when she didn't want to. But she did always look her best when visiting considering the one time Sakura took tea with Hinata after training and the Hyuuga Lord walked by and eyed her clothing with distaste. He then made a very insulting comment to Hinata that she should keep better company. Needless to say Sakura didn't want to lose her one friend over something as petty as appearance.

Lifting her tea cup delicately to her lips Sakura let the warmth waft up into her face before taking a small sip. Jasmine…her favorite…with two small scoops of sugar. Setting the cup back on the small plate Sakura took a deep breath letting the fragrant flowers fill her senses.

"So…" Sakura turned cheekily to Hinata, "What kind of show can we expect today?"

As expected Hinata blushed, "Neji-san and Sasuke-san will be training today."

"What you mean your little Namikaze eye candy won't be here challenge the little Uchiha?"

Hinata covered her mouth to hide her embarrassed gasp, "N-No," she whispered, "Naruto-san won't be here today. At least that's what I heard Neji-san say yesterday evening."

"Pity for you then," Sakura sighed taking another sip, "I guess all the ogling goes to me then."

"You misunderstand me Sakura-san. I never said I would not be taking any pleasure in our…blatant viewing of the opposite sex."

And that was the spunk that Hinata rarely showed but Sakura absolutely adored, "My apologies Hinata-san. Let us enjoy the lovely view together shall we?"

Hinata giggled at Sakura's cheeky smile, "We shall."

They continued their chat while helping themselves to small sandwiches and desserts that Hinata had delivered to their table. Their tea pot was never empty. And as promised Sakura and Hinata were both graced with the opportunity to watch as both males stripped themselves to bare chests and began their training. It really was beautiful Sakura admitted to herself, especially the way the second Uchiha son wielded his katana. He had a flourish and an elegance that only one born to wield that kind of weapon could possess. When she turned her attention to Neji, who flowed easily through his katas while deflecting blows from the Uchiha, it was mesmerizing. Of course watching two of the most powerful bloodlines going head to head was always something interesting to watch. After about a couple hours they called for a short break and made their way up to the veranda. Sakura and Hinata stopped their chatting waiting for the two men to pass.

While the young men made their way towards the women Sakura instantly reminded herself that while those men might look delicious…they were definitely not worth her attention. They were a part of the conceited group who thought all women were brainless trophies. And they always chose to walk pass them and mutter degrading things such as, "why do they watch? Not like they can learn anything," or "weak females," it irritated her to no end.

Then today they did something she did not expect…they stopped at the table.

"Don't you women have something better to do?" Neji asked with a slight frown marring his naturally striking features.

Sakura didn't answer but she returned his mild glare with a darker and more sinister version. Sasuke said nothing and only looked down his nose at the glaring Sakura and meek Hinata. The Hyuuga heiress rarely made eye contact with anyone she felt even remotely intimidated by so Sakura took it upon herself to make sure she was glaring enough for the both of them.

Seeing that he was losing a small battle of wills against the pinkette Neji turned his attention to his cousin and scoffed, "Can't even master the gentle fist when she should be grateful she is allowed to try." He turned on his heel and continued to walk away, Sasuke following a few steps behind him.

When Sakura finished seething at their retreating backs she turned her attention back to Hinata and found tears quietly escaping her eyes, "Hinata don't you take what that arrogant bastard said to heart. He doesn't know what he's talking about."

"B-But it's true," she forced out, "I-I can't even g-get past the basics." Her delicate fingers grabbed her napkin so she could blot her eyes.

"Hinata how many hours a day to you actually get time to practice?"

She sniffed, "About two hours on a good day."

"Exactly! And how many hours do those _men_ get to practice. Almost all damn day. Do _not_ compare yourself to them especially if you are not even given the time to train properly yourself."

"You speak with such confidence Sakura-san more than I feel."

Sakura smirked, "That's because I know that one day women will be equal with men. There will be kunoichi among Konoha's shinobi ranks…and I have a feeling that _that_ time is coming soon."

Hinata finished cleaning her face then looked up at her friend, "And if I know you my friend, you will be the one to lead this new generation of kunoichis."

Sakura's grin turned absolutely victorious making Hinata's smile brighten, "You better believe it."

Her brunch with Hinata ended shortly afterward and Sakura found herself on her way home. While walking she pondered what her friend had said about training. It really wasn't anything too surprising considering it was tradition that the noble clan head's children, be it sons or daughters, learned how to fight. The biggest difference that she noticed was the time spent training for the men and women. Obviously the women were taught more as a courtesy or tradition rather than practical use like the men were. Sakura's family was only of the civilian noble blood. There were hardly any known people in the family tree that had learned of the ways to separate and control their chakra.

Her father was technically an anomaly. He had displayed great taijustu prowess and superior chakra control at an early age causing his parents to enroll him in shinobi training. Few men were at his level. Then he was accepted into ANBU because of his ability to go above and beyond with his taijutsu and use of chakra. A feat that was surprising considering his civilian background.

Typically all shinobi could utilize chakra and mold it. But ANBU was by invitation only and required a variety of ninjutsu, accurate and deadly taijutsu, and quick thinking. It was a great honor to her family when her father received the invitation. And if she were speaking traditionally…she really shouldn't be training at all. Technically as a civilian noble woman her time should only be spent learning how to run a household. But due to her history, her father felt it was clearly beneficial to teach his daughter ninjutsu over housekeeping.

Her father had often told her that she should have been born a boy. If she would have been a boy she would be a Jounin by now. She would have been enrolled at the Academy with the rest of the male population to study the ways of shinobi and other scholarly disciplines. What a pity that Sakura was a girl...

She arrived at the gate to her home and opened it easily. While she was a noble woman Sakura's family wasn't high up on the list, they only had a few servants and they mostly helped clean the house and prepare meals. They couldn't afford to hire guards for their estate like the Hyuuga could. Any animals they had were tended to by herself and her father. But that was definitely a chore that she didn't mind.

"Sakura is that you?" he mother's voice echoed and Sakura removed her shoes at the door.

"Hai Okaa-san, I've just returned from the Hyuuga home."

"It's time to get ready! Hurry up and change your clothing!"

Sakura snapped up from her position, "What? Why?"

Her mother came around the corner and smirked at her, "Don't tell me you've forgotten about your appointment…" Sakura's eyes widened as her mother crossed her arms delicately. "With your matchmaker…"

_Oh no... _Sakura's face paled, _The matchmaker…_

* * *

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	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you everyone for your reviews they are greatly appreciated and you know who you are :) Here's the chapter please enjoy!**

* * *

_This is not happening._

**Uhh…I think it is…**

_This is so NOT happening!_

**Sweetie you're repeating yourself now. **

How on earth had she managed to forget today was matchmaker day? She could have sworn it was on Friday. What didn't add up? How had this happened? Sakura had an elaborate plan all worked out! It was perfect and fool proof. Her father would be away from the house so he wouldn't be able to see through her illusion. First she would state she was going to train then get injured, rub pig's blood that she would purchase from the butcher _tomorrow_, and then cast a genjutsu so her mother would insist she stay home instead of going! It was brilliant….so why didn't it work?

**Because your mother is an evil genius and probably lied to you about the date. Looks like she pulled a fast one over your disbelieving eyes.**

Oh. My. Gosh…her Inner was right. Her mother tricked her. She sighed, _I guess I shouldn't be too surprised._

**No you shouldn't. Your overly elaborate plan probably would have worked out if you hadn't pulled similar elaborate plans to get out of other important meetings, gatherings, and other such things.**

Why couldn't she have stayed fifteen? Then she wouldn't have to deal with this…drama. Sakura hung her head in despair. She knew exactly what meeting the matchmaker entailed. She now had to face her worse nightmare…dressing like a noble woman. Or course that meant a full kimono and powdering of her face and other painful procedures that she really could live without. But of course anything less than overdone and she wouldn't be desirable to any of the noblemen. At least she wasn't from a noble bloodline clan so in hindsight she would be alright. The really stuck up nobles would never look at a civilian woman like her. No, those clans only looked for other women in other clans. And she was perfectly fine with a civilian nobleman to be her husband…if only he didn't get in the way of her training. He would definitely need to know that her training came before being a trophy housewife. Maybe marrying into a clan wouldn't be so bad…that way they at least understood the importance of shinobi training. But…then again…she was a woman and women weren't allowed to train. This was just a no win situation! But she wouldn't feel pity for herself and she wouldn't cry. No, any weakness that she was feeling would be bottled up inside and only to be released in training.

Sighing, she walked to the bathroom and disrobed sluggishly. She sat down on the wooden stool and began to wash away the filth on her body before soaking in the tub. When she finished she grabbed a large fluffy towel and dried off before examining her body in the mirror, a habit she developed recently.

Her arms with perfectly toned, any soft skin a man was expecting in a woman like her would promptly be blown away. She was proud of her muscled arms, it was a sign that she wasn't like other women. Next she examined her taut breasts…they were getting bigger. She growled. Apparently the bindings she always wore weren't hindering their growth. Big breasts were a nuisance and they were definitely a feature that attracted the opposite sex. If there was one thing Sakura could control over her body…it would be giving herself small breasts. With a final growl she dropped the subject…it wouldn't do to get mad over something she couldn't control. She should just be grateful that her breasts were not as big as Tsunade-sama's. Oh yes…she was very grateful. Her eyes continued downward and her fingers softly caressed her defined abdomen. She smirked; this was another feature that any man would never suspect on her. She had a four, almost six pack that could rival some men and she was damn pleased with that fact. But if she had to admit…her most favorite feature on her body was her stunning legs. Yes, she had mile long legs that were just as beautifully toned as the rest of her body. Kami above she loved her legs, they were so deceiving. She just knew that any man's jaw would drop the minute the caught a glimpse of her drop dead sexy legs. She hummed in approval and started to turn in the mirror so she could admire her large but toned duck butt, which came automatically with her great legs, but she suddenly froze. Large, bulbous, white scars marred what would have been perfectly flawless skin on her back. And at the angle she was looking at she could see the smaller scar on her hip…where that bastard dropped his knife to confront her father. While her front always looked good her back was another story. The scars were crisscrossed all around her back in no definable pattern. That sick bastard just wanted to cause her pain. Looking away from the mirror Sakura lifted her hands. Small faint scarring could be seen. Tsunade had insisted on healing her hands for aesthetic reasons, but Sakura wouldn't let her heal her back. No those painful, ugly scars reminded Sakura of who she was and why. They defined her.

She shivered, the air around her suddenly making her cold. Those memories needed to stay suppressed for the moment. She didn't want to worry her mother over her fears when the woman was so excited to play dress up doll on her daughter. With a small roll of her eyes Sakura got up and used a small wind technique to dry her hair. She perfumed her body with the winter blossom oils all the while wishing that their clan was not a silk exports clan. For if they were not, then they wouldn't be noble, and she wouldn't be in this situation. But alas her civilian family was the finest silk distributer in their region…or so she liked to boast on occasion.

She came out of the bathroom in clean bindings with a steel mesh shirt over it and a pair of shorts made from blinding cloth that was sewn together with steel wires and ends to keep everything together easily. Needless to say her design was made to stay on even if someone took a kunai and ripped through any cloth shirt she was wearing. She had created it herself and she was proud of her makeshift armor. She really wanted to test it out against a blade but her father, mother, Hinata, and Tsunade refused to do so. And the servants would rather be caught dead than to attack her. Oh well she was confident that it would hold up.

"Sakura! Are you sure you still want to wear those?" Kiyari asked her daughter taking in the homemade armor. The three women behind her kept silent with blank faces.

"Of course mother…it is for my own safety," Sakura answered solemnly.

"Yes, yes," her mother sighed while straighten her yukata. If there was a subject that the entire house didn't talk about it was the incident. By mutual unspoken consent they never discussed the past, nor any of the subsequent behaviors that had come of it. Sakura's armor was taboo and her mother bowed her head in respect to her daughter's choice, "We do not have much time. Let's get to it then."

Sakura smiled softly knowing her mother was slightly flustered but was trying to find an out.

"Now Sakura, this is Minoka and Haruka," She pointed to two very thin waif-like women, "They will be helping you dress."

She nodded but looked at them apprehensively. Normally Sakura could dress herself but considering this was a _very_ special occasion meant that she was going to be tormented to layers upon layers of expensive silks. Obviously she couldn't do it on her own.

"I will be applying your makeup and Yamai," a short woman with greying but beautifully knotted hair, "Shall be fixing that hair of yours." Sakura sighed heavily. All she wanted to do was die...but this was important to her mother. And in all seriousness this should be important to her but she just couldn't find it in herself to care. She was going to be thrust in the den of prissy women who were all dressed to impress. The only thing that comforted Sakura was the fact Hinata will also be in attendance.

A printed hakama came first and was tied snuggly around her already small waist. Next came the sheer uchigi that was tied tightly around her chest. The ladies were extra vigilant not to get the delicate material snagged on her self-made mesh shirt. Layer one was completed, now she only had to suffer through ten more. Each piece of uchigi that was placed on her body was a denser material making it weigh heavily on her petite body.

_Good thing I'm in such great shape or else I wouldn't be able to move_, she grumbled to herself.

**Relax babe. Just wait until they are finished, you're going to be a knock out.**

_None of the potential "males" are even going to be there. Honestly it'd be better if I just showed up in a yukata. _

Her Inner gasped, **Nonsense while I know you hate these things you do look rather beautiful. **

Turning her head slightly Sakura caught a glimpse of herself in the full length mirror in the room. The two women were fastening the tenth layer on her and it was a rich gold silk. They also fastened another matching gold hakama before removing the final layer from inside her closet. She honestly couldn't see the appeal. Right she looked as if her body was three times her normal size.

The weight of the heavy wide-sleeved furisode cut off her train of thought. This was definitely going to be a hassle to walk in. The fabric was a soft light pink with multicolored butterflies dotting the whole fabric. Shimmering dark blue and gold flowers made it whole piece perfect. Her obi was an almost yellow green with dark green and silver patterns on it. Alright she could admit that this kimono was rather beautiful…after all she did pick it out herself. The obi was fastened securely in a tight butterfly knot and her dressing was complete.

She turned with help from the women dressing her to look again in the full length mirror. She looked regal in her garb, like a lady in waiting at the Hokage's court. The long sleeves of her furisode barely touched the ground with her arms down. She looked like the epitome of spring…and she wasn't even done.

"Time for your hair Sakura-chan," her mother told her.

Sakura nodded and stepped off the small platform to be seated in a small stool. The hairdresser began brushing her waist length silky pink locks humming contentedly.

"Your hair is so beautiful Sakura-san," she smiled at her warmly, "So soft and fine. Is there anything you want me to do?"

"Uhhh," Sakura looked sheepishly up at her in the mirror, "Not a lot of hair accessories?"

The woman nodded, "I think I have just the style for you then. And since you have a lot of fine hair it will give you a simple yet elegant look. Will that do?"

"Sure," she answered with a small hitch in her voice. _Control the nerves_, she growled to herself.

With that the woman began her tedious work. Sakura took this time to stare off into space and contemplate all the annoying women she was going to have to dodge before her mother came and sat beside her.

"So Sakura, I know that this whole process isn't something that you like…" she started lightly.

Sakura gave her a "ya think" look, only to be chastised by the hair dresser about moving her head.

Kiyari sighed, "I know…and I just want you to know that even though you hate the thought of being married off, I'm here for you. And I won't let you father make any arrangements on who you marry without my approval. With that said…is there anything you want to tell me so that I can take it into account when offers start coming in from Tsunade."

Sakura sighed…

**Tell her.**

_Tell her what?_

**You know what. She's being completely sincere about you feelings so don't waste this moment by being an ass.**

…_You're right…ok._

"Mom…" she started folding her hands repeatedly in her lap, "In all honesty I don't care who I marry. He could be poor or he could be rich and I wouldn't care. But…I just want to marry someone who can respect me. I've trained hard for most of my life and I know you know why. I can't give that up. And I won't stay in a marriage with someone who disrespects who I am. I won't care if I end up shaming myself…I will leave him."

Kiyari nodded seriously but with an understanding smile.

"I just want to be lucky just like you and dad were when you were married," she continued, "I know that I probably won't love the man that I get stuck with and I know…"

"Sakura-chan," her mother placed a comforting hand over her daughter's, "I love you and of course we'll pick someone right for you. Believe it or not your father has been very picky about who we entertain recently. He only allows people in our home who he thinks you might be interested in."

Sakura gave her other another look, this one saying "I hate all men equally."

Kiyari smirked, "I know. And he knows too. But at least interacting with those young men gives us a good taste of what you can handle. And it of course lets us meet his family. Anyway, I hear the Uchiha heir isn't looking for highly bred women."

"MOM!" Sakura yelped eyes going wide, "There's no way in HELL I will marry an Uchiha. Hell no!"

"Please don't move Sakura-san!" the hair lady yelled at the same time as her mother.

"Sakura language!" her mother criticized glaring at her, "Do not use such offensive language today do you hear me?!"

"Yes…"

Her mother gave another small sigh and Sakura thought she spotted another emotion…regret. While marrying an Uchiha would be a very high honor to the family Kiyari knew chances at a marriage proposal were slim. Still she could hope, "Good, now let me finish before you interrupt me. While yes the Uchiha heir would be a long shot for a marriage offer, I was going to suggest maybe we find you a shinobi family. As a high ranking civilian family I'm sure we could negotiate with a shinobi clan if that would satisfy you."

She sat thinking about that option. If she were to marry into a shinobi family they would at least respect her decision to continue her training since they would know the importance of keeping in shape. Whereas she would definitely have a more difficult time convincing a civilian husband of such a thing. Not to mention with her father being a formidable ANBU Captain he knew many of the clans that would likely offer, "I would be ok with that."

Her mother beamed at her, "Alright…anything else you might want us to consider?"

She shrugged unable to think of anything else to say.

"All finished my dear," the hair lady trilled, "What do you think?"

Sakura looked up into the mirror with a blatant look of shock. It was…

**Perfect!**

Yamai had lived up to her word. It was an elegant array of knots that as simplistic in nature but elegant in their look. Three small braids on each side of her head lined in a soft curve up to a round cup of pink hair on the top-back part of her head. Yamai wrapped a silver ribbon around the entire base of the cup. The rest of her hair was done up in a series of braids that seemed to be spilling out of the top of the hair cup. Then with strategically placed silver jewels and gold flowers the four largest braids were made to look like butterfly wings, surrounded the central cup. Her bangs were swept to the side covering the majority of her slightly larger forehead. Across the top of her head two delicate braids held the smooth surface of her hair before hooking into the rest of the piece. All in all she matched the theme of her kimono perfectly she was looking more and more like the personification of spring.

Kiyari smiled seeing her daughter's dumbfounded expression, "See every once in a while it's ok to actually dress like a woman."

Sakura's shock instantly soured as she stuck her bottom lip out in a pout, "That was low."

"But no less true," she dismissed Yamai, "Now it's time to paint your face."

She groaned, "Nothing too heavy please." She begged.

Kiyari laughed lightly, "Alright, how about a light foundation as a compromise. Since your skin is already a beautiful porcelain. But for your eyes I'm afraid I won't be able to help."

"Fine…" she grumbled then closed her eyes at her mother's instruction.

A soft white powder was brushed onto her face but true to her word Kiyari only applied one layer. Next she opened her stash of colors and pulled out a large round container the color slightly darker than Sakura's hair. Applying the blush slowly to her face Kiyari made sure that the blush was slightly darker next to her ear in order to accentuate her daughter's high cheekbones.

Next came the tweezers and Kiyari had to bite her lip to keep from laughing at her daughter's grimaces and grumbles.

"It's not that bad besides it's been a while since you've maintained them," she admonished with a smile, "It's all your fault."

Sakura didn't say a word and kept her grumblings to herself.

Once Kiyari was satisfied she replaced the tweezers in favor of eye shadow. She definitely wanted to bring out Sakura's emerald eyes so darker colors would be the best. Selecting a soft brown she applied it to the base of her daughter's eyes followed by a dark forest green. The darker color was applied to the corners of her eyes then followed the natural slope of her lid. To add an even more accentuating feature Kiyari had the green flip slightly up at the corners. To finish the look a light silver shimmer was dusted at the inner corners of her eyes and up by her eyebrows. Dark brown eye liner was applied to the upper and lower portions of Sakura's eyes then finally mascara. Using her most coveted tool Kiyari instructed Sakura to blink on her heated eye lash curler. With the mascara already applied her delicate lashes were now frozen upward in a natural curl.

Opening up a small drawer Kiyari withdrew a long brush that looked as if it was typically used for writing calligraphy. Dipping it slowly in the red paint she instructed her daughter to part her lips. Sakura complied and soon her small pouty lips were painted in a sinful red. Kiyari smiled at her accomplishment.

"Open your eyes and tell me what you think."

Sakura complied and for a moment she didn't recognize herself. She was…beautiful.

**Wow…maybe we can dress you up more often.**

Her eyes were smoky yet seemed to shimmer with…intelligence? Mischievousness? She couldn't quite place the look. Having been more prone to training and caring less about how she looked to others she never suspected she could look like this. Like a Juni-hito princess.

"You're so beautiful my daughter," her mother sniffed suppressing her tears, "I know this isn't something you like doing…but I hope after today…when the situation calls for it, you will let me dress you up so I can show you off as the beautiful, elegant, and intelligent woman you are."

Sakura's gaze left the mirror to look up her mother. She could see how happy this made her and how important this moment was. She was going to meet her matchmaker so that she could find a potential spouse. This was a traditional and a significant cultural custom and one that her mother obviously took great pride in. All the lessons that she stubbornly went through would be for nothing if Sakura didn't suck up her pride for once in her life and give her mother and this practice the respect it deserved.

"I'm sorry mother," Sakura told her solemnly, "I meant you no disrespect. I guess…I guess this whole thing makes me a little nervous."

Kiyari smiled sweetly knowing that her daughter was finally relenting. It pleased her, "I love you my daughter."

"I love you to Okaa-san," Sakura smiled. She only called her mother by the formal name on rare occasions and usually when she wanted to show her deep respect or the true depth of her love.

With another flick of her hand two pure white tabi and a pair of four inch getas were brought over to her. Kiyari easily slipped the tabi over her legs followed by the geta. Sakura eyed them hesitantly the small base was rather intimidating. She definitely knew that she couldn't walk easily without using her chakra.

She smirked to herself, _I bet I'll be one of few women who won't be tripping over her feet while wearing these death traps._

**Us 1, other over primped women 0.**

"Come on Sakura." She helped her daughter up slowly from the stool, "Time to get the full picture."

She stood in front of the full length mirror and examined her full form. She no longer looked like a tough tomboy…she looked like a lady in waiting. It frightened her to some extent, she looked vulnerable and that was a feeling that she severely disliked. But with a small hiss Kigechu poked his head out and Sakura brought her arm up to place a small kiss on his head. His presence was a comforting reminder that while she might look delicate and vulnerable, she was anything but.

"Sakura! That snake of yours can't go!" her mother protested immediately.

"He's coming with me. I never go anywhere without him." Her words held a tone of authority that left no room for compromise.

Her mother only sighed but new better than to start an argument that she was going to lose. With slow measured steps they dropped the subject and proceeded out of the room. Sakura was left standing at the front door. A few minutes later her mother returned followed by her father.

"My daughter," Kyodu smiled proudly at her, "You look radiant."

"Thanks daddy," she smiled sheepishly at him, "I feel a little ridiculous."

"Nonsense, you are a young lady I suppose it's time you start acting and looking like one," he crossed his arms but smirked playfully at her.

Sakura wrinkled her nose at Kyodu making him chuckle then turned to her mother.

"Take the bag dear, it holds charms and prayers from the shrine and a fan if you feel warm," Kiyari pressed a small silver purse into her hand, the string wrapped easily around her wrist.

"Yes mama."

"And remember to keep your mouth shut and do not argue with any girls okay?"

"Okay," Sakura rolled her eyes at her promise.

"You remember how to get there?"

"Yes Tsunade did take me as an apprentice mom. Her house hasn't changed since then."

Sakura bowed to both her parents before turning and walking leisurely towards her master's residence.

"Her quick mastery of the Geta is admirable. Took me a whole month to be able to move as quickly," Kiyari commented.

"Don't look so impressed," Kyodu kissed his wife's temple, "She's cheating by using her chakra."

* * *

As she walked the familiar path in the city she couldn't help but spot other girls just like her, making their way towards Tsunade's home. Many of them looked excited while others were obviously nervous.

_I guess it's not just me. Many of these girls look absolutely terrified._

**Reasonable considering they have no idea who they will be married to.**

She was halfway there when an odd thought struck her. Why did her mother mention the Uchiha heir? It was odd to say the least, she didn't really believe that Sakura could marry such a man…did she? No she can't think that way. Every woman in the world wanted to marry an Uchiha and if she were the unfortunate woman then she would have to live the rest of her life being the envy of every woman her age and older. It would best to just not get involved with that family. Besides Sasuke was a total arrogant ass, especially after that last confrontation with Hinata.

But Itachi?

Well as much as Sakura would love to hate him she honestly couldn't form an opinion. She had only met him once briefly. He had barely spoken to her but he was definitely polite in the traditional chivalrous sense. But it was still not enough to form a concrete opinion. Even so…she did not want to marry an Uchiha, especially if he turned out to be like his brother.

She knew she had reached her destination because there was a crowd where all the young ladies of sixteen and seventeen stood in Tsunade's courtyard. She briefly scanned the crowd and decided she didn't feel like making any type of entrance. Then she spotted Hinata; she stood off to the side in a corner near some of the clan women. Sakura easily breezed around the wall to where Hinata was standing and launched herself up and over the wall with chakra. Lifting her kimono slightly she landed perfectly on the ground only kicking up a small puff of dust. Hinata gave a startled gasp at her presence.

"Sakura-san," she breathed before smiling, "You startled me."

"My apologies Hinata-san, but I didn't feel like walking through the main entrance and through the large gaggle of women if you know what I mean," Sakura winked at her friend.

Hinata giggled, "Yes, I arrived early so I wouldn't have to either." She paused to take in her friend's appearance, "By the way Sakura-san you look absolutely stunning."

Sakura gave her a bashful smile, "Oh…thanks Hinata-san. I feel…really out of my element."

"It's alright, just hold your head up. You are a noble even if you come from a civilian background."

Sakura smiled gratefully at her friend before taking in her appearance. Hinata wore a white kimono lined with deep purple sashes and large plum irises imprinted onto the silk. Her navy hair was pulled into an elegant twist and clipped in the back and the top of her head was decorated with a large array of fresh flowers. Her makeup was simple like Sakura's but gave off more of a motherly look than sophistication. Her lips were a light glossy pink.

"Well I'm certainly nothing compared to you but thank you for the compliment," Sakura bowed slightly.

Just then her "arch-rival" sauntered up to her looking quite silly as she did. She could not walk on the geta properly and had to take tiny steps to reach Sakura and Hinata. But despite how poorly the blonde was trying to balance in her shoes Sakura could tell she was going to have to watch her words. Ino was about to come unleash hell.

"Well, well if it isn't our little civilian come to join us," Ino snidely commented.

Both women didn't respond and stared at her with blank faces. Ino and Sakura had been friends until a week after the incident Ino had told Sakura that she wanted Uchiha Sasuke and after the incident Sakura had stopped talking to her. She had assumed that Sakura wanted him as well, like most of the other girls in the village. When in reality Sakura chose not to be her friend anymore because of what the young girl was turning into; a prissy, powdered, vulnerable girl and that was something that Sakura swore she wouldn't ever become. And if she didn't want to become that then she couldn't be friends with anyone like that.

Ino, Sakura knew, was a Yamanaka and thereby was permitted to learn chakra usage and the other shinobi arts considering she was a bloodline clan, but she knew she did not work hard at it. Ino was able to transfer her mind but that was about all she could do. And if she ever tried pulling her technique on Sakura that powdered drama queen wouldn't know what hit her. Ino practiced less that Hinata did and she never took her training seriously. How did Sakura know…well she wouldn't admit it out loud but she had done some spying around the village. It was considered training, right?

She was pulled back into the present with another snide comment with the blonde, "So what is a civilian like you doing over here anyway. Shouldn't you be standing over there with all the other civilian girls?"

"I don't recall being directed to stand anywhere and as such I think I'm permitted to wait where ever I please," Sakura intoned dryly. She could take petty insults but if Ino thought she was above her just because she was from a bloodline clan then she had another thing coming.

Ino looked quite pretty, she supposed. She had a heavily painted face, hair done up in an elegant twist that stuck out of the back of her head like a horn. Flowers were set inside the twist as well as throughout the rest of her hair. Sakura figured they had extra flowers to spare considering they didn't have to buy any. Her family, while shinobi, also sold flowers in Konoha. The kimono was very pretty, a light purple gradient with a dark green and contrasting colored flowers. A pity Ino could not carry a kimono the way Sakura did not to mention she had the grace of an elephant. She could tell Ino was slightly envious at the easy way that Sakura held herself. Sakura wanted to roll her eyes, if that woman had half a brain in her skull then she would realize that if she put chakra in her feet then all her problems would disappear. But she wasn't about the help the selfish girl, her chakra control probably still sucked anyway.

"Hinata-chan I don't know how you can stand around with her, why don't you come over here with me and the other bloodline girls," Ino held her arm out in an invitation.

Hinata looked at her like she was crazy. She briefly shot a glance at Sakura and noticed her friend was trying really hard not to do anything rash, "Yamanaka-san," she started with a quiet but authoritative tone, "I don't remember giving you permission to address me so informally. In fact I don't even remember you greeting myself or Haruno-san properly."

Ino was slightly taken aback at the typically quiet girl's tone. She glared at Sakura knowing that her bad attitude was obviously rubbing off on the Hyuuga heiress. This obviously needed to be fixed, "My apologies Hyuuga-san. I meant you no disrespect. I am sure that you would rather be in _better _company."

"I believe I am quite capable of choosing my own company. Thank you for your concern," Hinata turned away from the conversation signaling to Ino that she was done socializing.

Ino was furious…she was just blown off! Nobody blows her off and gets away with it! "Hyuuga-san, it does not do well for you to be seen with the likes of her! She has a bad reputation in the village; she's insensitive, crass, belligerent, and these are characteristics I'm sure your family does not want you to be around!"

"I believe that Hyuuga-san dismissed you with her previous statement," Sakura took a purposeful step in front of her best friend. No way was she going to let Hinata be bullied. As Ino stated, her reputation in the village was already set, Hinata's needed to stay clean.

"I was not addressing you Sakura," Ino growled.

"It would seem to me that while you are taking the time pointing out my unladylike characteristics you seem to be displaying some far worse than my own," Sakura inwardly smirked while outwardly she kept the same stony expression.

"Don't you dare compare me to you! My flowers are bigger and they have jewels on them not to mention that my kimono has gold threads in it which would indeed make them much more expensive than yours. You don't stand a chance at marrying well. You family's only trade is in silk which is a common trade in this part of the country meaning that your family is poor. So don't talk to me as if we are on the same level because we are not you…civilian!"

Sakura was getting more annoyed by the second. Not only was Ino trying to distinguish rank but now she was picking on her family. Those insults never went unpunished. In order to keep the promise to her mother about not getting into a verbal spat with any women she decided to take a different path. After all she never said she couldn't use Kigechu.

Hinata face turned and she stared aghast at Ino's accusations. She was surprised at how well Sakura was taking the insults considering her naturally short temper. But when her sleeve moved down and grazed the cobble stone courtyard Hinata had to hide a small smirk as she watched Sakura's snake leave her sleeve. Oh…this was about to get interesting. Hinata inwardly smiled in anticipation.

Sakura easily sent a chakra message into her snake and added an extra boost of malicious intent. She wanted to embarrass this woman to the point that the blonde bitch would never approach her again. She could feel her snake grow smaller as he began unwinding from around her body. Sakura let her sleeves touch the ground letting Kigechu out. His turned into a dark grey to match the stone and from what Sakura could tell he was no bigger than her pinky.

_This is gonna be good._

**Get that nasty harpy!**

A small tingle at the base of her spine alerted her to watching eyes. Glancing around at the other women in the courtyard it was obvious that they would watch the embarrassing display of the Yamanaka. But they were not the cause of her spine tingle. No whoever caused it was hidden so she began a chakra search starting in the surrounding trees. It was probably some creeper trying to catch a peek at all the eligible females. Oh she would show that bastard a thing or two once she spotted him.

Except there was one problem…she couldn't find the pervert.

**That means it's probably a shinobi. Look for life force chakra.**

_Good idea._

There were very few people who were adept at suppressing their life force. While true that suppressing regular chakra would keep you relatively concealed from prying eyes…but if you could suppress your life force then you were undetectable, even from sensor types. After a cursory glance around the perimeter she finally caught a faint chakra signature and her eyes locked onto the being hiding in the trees.

_Holy shit it's Uchiha Itachi!  
_**Holy shit it's Uchiha Itachi!**

_What the hell is he doing here?!_

**Obviously enjoy the view, **Her Inner commented noting the small smirk on his face, **He's probably noticed Kigechu leave your sleeve, which would account for the smirk.**

_Well fine, I hope he enjoys the show…creeper._ Her opinion of him just dropped…slightly…

* * *

Uchiha Itachi was well-known for being the prodigy of the Konoha. An ANBU operative at the age of thirteen and a reputation for being so fast, that not even the top taijutsu specialist Maito Gai, who concentrated on speed, could beat him. He was the eldest son and heir of one of the most highly sought after clans and had a mastery over his bloodline technique that no other Uchiha could compare to.

But Uchiha Itachi had a problem. He was also very handsome; handsome to the point that he had received more than a thousand wedding proposals from matchmakers from all over the Land of Fire, some of them from the matchmakers themselves, much to his annoyance and embarrassment. While being handsome was a problem it wasn't something he had any control over…as was another problem.

His bigger problem at the moment was that one of the women in the courtyard below him would be his bride. His father knew that Itachi would not marry willingly, even if it was his duty to the clan. He was an antisocial being which was born from his having to grow up so fast at such a young age. But his father also knew that Itachi disliked noble bloodline girls and refused to consider an Uchiha girl as a bride. As a compromise and in order to get his ridiculously stubborn son to even try and commit to marriage, he told him to have a look around and decide on a different type of girl that appealed to him.

"_I don't care if she's noble or not," Fugaku rubbed the bridge of his nose in exasperated frustration, "Just find yourself a woman so that you can have an heir before you get any older."_

Admittedly this is the exact reaction Itachi was looking for. Being isolated at an early age Itachi wanted to have the power to choose who he spent the rest of his life with. He didn't want a woman who was boring or weak, he didn't want one that only wanted him for his name and money. No he wanted an equal. He wanted a clever woman that he could hold an intelligent conversation with. A slightly competent shinobi would be preferable but knowing the type of women in his village…one such woman would be rare. Which lead him to his current position, hiding in Tsunade's large oak tree, observing all the women who had just come of age.

He had been sitting in that tree for over thirty minutes and had scrutinized each of the girls with a very picky eye. He had even sent chakra to his ear to listen to what they said. As far as he could tell, only some of the girls had developed enough chakra coils to barely meet the minimum standard for a Genin let alone a Chunin. How very disappointing. And all of them save for the Hyuuga heiress, were speaking of who they wanted to marry and how they would lie about themselves just to get married to a high up clan. It was either him, or his little brother, or Hyuuga Neji, were the hottest topics of conversation. Not to mention they were all covered in makeup so their faces looked fake and had too many flowers in their hair for his liking. Yes he was being super picky but he felt he had earned that right.

He had been prepared to give up, none of the women were meeting his standard...but then she arrived. He almost missed her sudden entrance had he not been studying the Hyuuga heiress. Her landing was flawless, not a hair out of place. His attention was definitely grabbed as he recognized the pink haired beauty before him. She was the same woman he ran into at the Hyuuga estate. The Hyuuga Lord had almost passed by her when Itachi had stopped to be introduced. His reason…she was beautiful. He distinctly remembered her defined porcelain face and that Hyuuga Hiashi introduced her as Haruno Sakura. He instantly connected the name Haruno with ANBU's former Captain Haruno Kyodu which Hiashi confirmed a moment later. Sakura had bowed respectfully allowing Itachi to take in her slightly formal yukata that Hiashi seemed to frown upon. His fortune at meeting the woman was cut short as Hiashi continued down the hall easily dismissing the woman. Ever since that day she had been on his mind.

And now here she was, standing among the women who were going to present themselves before the matchmaker meaning she was eligible to be married. Her appearance pleased him, her hair a perfect combination of hair and jewels. Her make light but refined, matching the way she held herself gracefully next to the Hyuuga heiress. Now he had to make sure she was up to par. Itachi had examined her chakra coils to see if she had any shinobi training or at the very least chakra usage. From the amount of development her chakra coils seemed to have, he felt it only reached the level of a Genin. The only female in that vicinity with Chunin chakra coils was the Hyuuga heiress. This was most interesting considering her rather flashy appearance into the courtyard. He knew that anyone with Genin level chakra control would not have landed as smoothly as she did, especially in that outfit. He dismissed the thought of her cloaking her chakra, because in order to do that, one had to learn how to separate life-force and regular chakra, only Jounin or ANBU could do that if they trained. She was only a civilian noble woman…that was impossible for her to master right?

She could simply be graceful he observed as she carried herself with the air of confidence that was rare for a woman of her status. He remembered Sasuke talking about her and he shared a story that had intrigued his elder brother. She had been drinking tea with Hinata in the courtyard when a kunai was misfired and flew their way. She merely tilted her head to the side and moved her hand downwards by a fraction letting the kunai hit the wall behind her. When asked about the incident she had merely said it was a reflex. He knew there was no way that kind of unconscious reaction was a reflex unless said reflex stemmed from intense shinobi training. He pondered for a few seconds…her father was a former ANBU Captain…maybe his daughter inherited some of his abilities. It was not a stretch to imagine in that regard, especially if he took it upon himself to train her after his retirement from ANBU.

Another memory popped into his mind. The day after Sasuke had told him the kunai story Itachi had trouble sleeping. He didn't want to sit in his room restless so he decided that since it was a full moon he would take a walk to try and clear his head. Maybe then he would fall asleep. Instead of clearing his mind it was instantly filled with a beautiful figure riding bare back on a horse out in the open meadow. Wearing what he suspected was a loose hippori that she didn't bother to tie properly and a hakama that was not tied high enough, it was a good thing he was watching from a distance. It would hardly be proper to observe the woman in such revealing clothing…but still he could not turn away from majestic beauty before him. The moonbeams made her already porcelain skin shimmer, her pink hair thrown back in a silver wave from the speed the horse was running. Her body was leaning down close to the stallion's back allowing the powerful animal to surge forward faster without as much wind resistance from its rider. Then suddenly the beast stopped at the end of meadow and surged back on its hind legs, the rider held tightly onto the horse's mane while he proclaimed his dominance of the night. The dark black mane glimmering onyx in the moonlight as the great animal shook its head, kicking his front feet in the air. The combination of his black body and her ethereal form were in such contrast that he couldn't help but admire the perfection, they both belonged together. Landing back again on its feet the stallion surged forward again but this time at a slower pace. Sakura sat up, threw her arms out to the sides, and leaned back taking a deep breath of the fresh air. She looked completely at peace surrounded by the night. But as he continued to watch her it wasn't so much she was at peace but something…more. Almost like she was free.

For a moment he was envious of her freedom. To be able to have this peace at her fingertips when he couldn't even find peace in sleep, a small wave of jealousy overtook him. So much had been placed on his shoulders not only as the Uchiha heir but also as an ANBU Captain and advisor to the Hokage. Between meetings, missions, and training he never had a moment to himself. Never a moment of peace…and it was that opportunity to be free that made him envious of the woman.

His train of thought was broken when the Yamanaka girl began screeching at the object of his fascination. Sakura had strategically placed her body in front of the Hyuuga heiress. Her face was a perfect façade of calm but underneath he felt her chakra spike in anger. He didn't need to enhance his hearing in order to hear the blonde shout her immature accusations. It was such childish behavior for a bloodline woman to be displaying…especially one that was meeting her matchmaker. He pitied whatever man ended up with her high maintenance hide. Sakura then lowered her arms still keeping an air of calm authority. It was a suspicious move to leave oneself vulnerable like that…until he spotted a small creature leave Sakura's furisode sleeve.

_What on earth is she planning to do with such a small animal?_ He thought to himself. While bewildered by her actions he couldn't help but become intrigued and he leaned forward slightly waiting to see what would happen. If the mischievous aura now surrounding pinkette was anything to go by he knew it was going to be good. Her crass and slightly volatile behavior was very well known to him.

She started scanning her surroundings and he smirked guessing that she had sensed his presence. If she was picking up his presence then her skill was at least that of a Chunin or greater. Now he was reconsidering her shinobi level and toyed with the idea that she may very well be suppressing the majority of her chakra. So he indulged her and let her find him. She made eye contact the instant he stopped suppressing his life force within him, which surprised him slightly. It took him a moment to realize that her look was challenging him in some way. Knowing her it was probably to say, _Enjoy the show. _ He smirked in response his answer obvious on his face.

The small grey creature slowly made its way up the skirt of the Yamanaka girl and she didn't even notice. He spied the Hyuuga heiress now watching the exchange with rapt attention. Sudden the blonde stilled and he could have sworn there was a large coil around the girl's middle that wasn't there prior. Her answering shriek confirmed his suspicions. Sakura had a summon? But he didn't see her weave signs? Not to mention summoning contracts were reserved for shinobi families not civilians. How very, very interesting.

Suddenly the immature woman's legs were tangled in a large purple mess as the snake quickly wrapped around her delicate appendages. And since the girl was wearing five inch tall getas, an over exaggeration for any typical woman, she promptly fell onto the dirt covered stones in the courtyard. Some of the other women, clans and civilians, laughed at Ino's demise. Her kimono now utterly ruined by snake bites and dirt. Her hair was askew and many of the plethora of flowers in her hair had fallen to the ground while she thrashed about trying to rid her body of the snake.

Sakura's miniscule wrist movement called the reptile back to her and with Itachi's now activated sharingan he could identify the creature as a snake and also how it shrunk in size before quickly flitting back up into Sakura's sleeve. He also noted the similar chakra signature that the snake and Sakura shared. That was definitely uncharacteristic of a summons and his master. He couldn't figure it out but he knew that Sakura held a strange sort of bond with the reptile. Maybe in time he would find out exactly what and how they became bonded.

"Haruno Sakura!" Her named was called by Tsunade's first apprentice Shizune.

She surprised him by turning to him again and making eye contact. Once he held her gaze she quickly glanced at the fallen Yamanaka then back at him. She then turn her nose up slightly in the air telling him that she was obviously not his type and that his brand of woman was currently lying on the floor. She was trying to turn him off of her.

Her plan would not work and if anything it made him want her even more.

He was definitely interested in her.

* * *

"Haruno Sakura!" And that was her cue. She would love to stay and watch Ino in distress but she had to go. She turned her head slightly to catch the elder Uchiha's eye. She made sure to send Ino a quick glance afterward her nonverbal message being "there's your woman." Instead of following her line of sight the Uchiha heir continued to stare unabashedly at her with his red eyes, his smirk widened.

_What a creeper!_

**One hot mess of a creeper…**

_INNER!_

She had praised Kigechu inwardly as the little thing slithered up her legs and settled nicely around her arm. She could have sworn she felt it preening as he flattened himself to look more like a tattoo than a snake. He was obviously quite pleased with himself. She cast Hinata one final look of luck then proceeded inside.

Inside the matchmakers home was filled with a rich spicy scent. Tonton came running up to her and she bowed slightly to pat the plump little pig on the head.

"Sakura. Come and sit."

"Yes Tsunade-sama."

Tsunade was the most renowned healer and was the first woman with the privilege of being officially trained past the Jounin level. However, tradition was tradition and rules were rules. She was still female and was only called upon when the country was in grave danger and the last time that had happened was ten years ago.

Her home had two sides to it and Sakura was the second person ever to be fortunate enough to see the second side. Double-leveled with a barely there gentle illusion cast on it to induce the person into being a lot more cooperative. Sakura and Shizune were the only two people to ever pass it unaffected had leading them to be in Tsunade's good graces. Not to mention that Sakura had a good sense of humor and a sharp wit that Tsunade found refreshing. The buxom woman had happily taught Sakura as much as she knew and had given her scrolls she had written herself to study. Unlike many of the proper girls, Sakura had no qualms with drinking sake and had in fact, sniffed out her sake room that was hidden in the walls. Not that she would ever confess to her parents about her under-age drinking. That was a secret she would take the grave.

After a good four years of Tsunade's thrice weekly company, Sakura could finish over fifty bottles of sixty percent alcohol and ten bottles of Tsunade's homemade wine distiller from corn. For special uses and purposes only, this ninety percent alcoholic drink had sent both Sakura and Tsunade to the floor. So far, Sakura still hasn't managed to out drink Tsunade on her homemade drink. She was still down by half a bottle, but she was determined to fix that when she got older. After the first taste of the drink Sakura knew she would have to circulate her chakra to remove the effects of alcohol. Of course, Tsunade had beat it into her that when she woke up in the morning after the night to remove all the toxins no matter how painful it was, or she would cut her open and do it herself. Sakura never wanted to try it that way. She always needed to do a system clean after drinking though Tsunade's high tolerance made her practically immune to such a procedure.

Tsunade-sama was well-known within Fire Country as well as many of the other hidden villages for her prowess as a medic as well as her mountain-crushing strength she held. When Sakura had badgered enough about learning the technique Tsunade finally complied…but only under the strictest of promises that she never used that technique. If the Elders found out she'd be in trouble. The rules of their country were tough on an ambitious woman. Add on the lack of women who were willing to go against the law to train to be kunoichis was not even five percent. The fight was lost before it even started. Tsunade always ranted about that very subject when she was hammered. Regardless, when Sakura had asked to be taken as an apprentice Tsunade had gladly complied muttering, "thank goodness some girl was willing to learn and was not afraid of some hard work."

It pained Tsunade to see so many able-bodied women refuse to become medics or even healers. If enough women were willing to try, she would happily train them all even if it would leave her utterly exhausted at the end of each day. However...that chauvinist Danzo had complained to the Council Elders often enough that it had reached a point where unless the woman was within a bloodline family, no formal training would be allowed for women in a public Academy setting. Therefore, only a few women had learned to be healers, and even then, they were too busy succumbing to their husbands wishes to really be effective. Not to mention the number of women choosing to learn dropped by fifty percent when the new edict Danzo and Elders drafted was put out for the public to read.

"Ummm, Tsunade-sama?" Sakura tilted her head scrutinizing the woman, "Are you drunk?"

The older woman bristled, "What the hell kind of a question is that?"

Sakura rolled her eyes, _yup definitely drunk,_ "You were muttering about inequality again. You didn't even notice that I had sat down."

She snorted, "Right, whatever…you can't expect me to meet with all these women and do it while I'm sober. It would drive them and me crazy that everyone would be found dishonorable and unsuitable to marry anybody in the village."

The pinkette giggled her hand delicately covering her mouth, "I guess that'd be true. In that case may I pour you another drink?"

Tsunade smirked at the girl, "Yes but do it properly. I do have a job to accomplish today."

Sakura nodded then delicately folded the long sleeve back and grabbed the sake bottle. She tilted the ceramic bottle until the powerful liquid filled the small cup leaving just enough room for the drinker to pick it up without spilling it.

"Perfectly done," she smiled and downed the drink, "We really should teach those girls how to pour sake not tea. Men prefer the stronger drink."

Sakura rolled her eyes. It was just like her to say something like that, "I'm sure they would."

"How's training with your father?"

"It's going well. I miss all the weapons he throws at me now. Dodge training with you helped immensely."

She nodded, "Good. How's your chakra control?"

"Perfect," Sakura stated proudly.

"Should I expect anything less from you," Tsunade smiled softly.

"Never."

"I thought not. Well, have you finished those scrolls I assigned you to read?"

"Yes I have."

"Good," she sipped her sake, "I want you to stop by when you have some free time and work on some of the antidotes you read about with Shizune."

Sakura nodded, "I'll probably be over tomorrow. Do you have any other scrolls for me to read?"

"No, by now you are just a learned as I am in this field," Tsunade lips quirked into a proud smirk, "How long have you been coming to see me?"

Sakura tilted her head up thinking, "I think about three years now."

The older woman snorted again, "Three years and you've already surpassed me. I've taught you everything I know…Kami I'm getting old."

"Awww, you're not old Tsunade-obaa-chan," Sakura giggled as the woman glared at her, "You don't look a day over thirty."

"HA! And it'll stay that way if I have anything to say or do about it."

Sakura paused for a second wondering if this was a good time, or even an appropriate time, to bring up a sensitive subject, "You know Tsunade-sama…you haven't taught me everything."

Amber eyes instantly hardened, "Don't even ask Sakura. It's forbidden."

"But if it's useful then it needs to be passed on!"

Tsunade growled at her petulance, "No. That's final."

"Fine if you won't teach me the forbidden jutsu then at least teach me your Yin Seal," Sakura folded her arms sending an uncompromising glower at her master.

The buxom woman paused, mid drink, to weigh the options, "Alright. I will teach you the Yin seal. But no more! You got it? I will never, EVER teach you that forbidden jutsu!"

Sakura nodded rather smugly.

Tsunade smiled, "You bullheaded, stubborn woman. Stop acting like me, men don't like that." Sakura was about to reply but she held up her hand silencing her, "I know what you're going to say. And I agree for the more part. Let's get this matchmaker business over with and I can teach you the technique."

"Okay."

"Now pour yourself some tea, Haruno Sakura, and lie about everything you are going to say to me."

Sakura giggled. "Of course Matchmaker-san."

Tsunade rolled her eyes then picked up the designated script that Shizune drafted for her three years ago. She smirked lightly at the thought. She had been so wasted this same day three years ago that she could barely remember what she was supposed to be doing. Needless to say, Shizune saved her matchmaking hide by stepping in and sobering her master up. She didn't completely blame herself though…reading through this stuff was more boring than watching paint dry. "Haruno Sakura, do you -" She couldn't do it. She sighed and cleared her throat again. "Now, Haruno Sakura, do- okay that is it! I can't do this to you!" She shoved the paper and board into Sakura's hands. "Read it."

Sakura smirked lightly thinking that she was only overacting…then she began reading.

_Requirements of a bride-to-be:_

_1. She has to be able to bear as many children as her husband wishes._

_2. She must understand that she is to cook, clean and sew for any member of the main house. This includes her husband's mother and father, her husband and their children. But this is only a requirement for those who will marry into a noble bloodline clan. Should she marry into any clan is however not in training to be a matriarch, she has to be prepared to clean and cook as well as do any other chores based on her ranking in the family._

_3. She must dress as her husband wishes and must fulfill his needs no matter how bizarre, crude, or tedious they may be._

_4. She must understand that her husband is permitted to have as many concubines and women as he wishes. He may visit the flower houses should he wish and she is not allowed to complain._

_5. If she has an improper relationship with other men she will be flogged in public and if she is impregnated both mother and child is to be drowned. However, if her husband does not wish her dead, she may be allowed to live but the child is to be drowned._

_6. Should she have any training or outings going on whatsoever, she should be prepared to cancel them all when she gets married. It is possible that she may have to completely give up her past lifestyle to accommodate her husband's lifestyle. This is because he is now providing for her._

_7. She must always have a cheerful, demure, and gentle demeanor and must be readily presentable at all times._

_These are just the basic requirements for any bride-to-be and should she not answer in accordance to this paper then she will not be a good wife for any man._

_Should she agree to the above list, the potential bride must then understand her husband's social standing is more important than her own. Intellect is not a desirable trait, she must remember to keep silent and know her place. If her opinion is asked then she may answer but use as little words as possible._

_Every bride-to-be will have their forms sent to a noble bloodline, a bloodline, or civilian clan of the matchmaker's choosing. There may be certain requirements in different houses and should the bride-to-be be unable to fulfill them she will not be considered for that clan_. _All notices will be received first to the matchmaker then she will deliver the requests to the clan head of the bride. Negotiations will follow afterward at the groom and his family's convenience. _

Sakura's hands were shaking as she slowly placed the paper on the table in front of her. This was unreal…"You say you can't do this to me. What about the other girls?"

"Sakura, none of the other girls have your spirit or fire. This is what they have been working for their entire lives. This type of woman is who they are. But not you, you are different. If you were to marry a man who expected nothing but this from you," she grabbed the paper and held it up for emphasis, "Kami Sakura it would destroy who you are. You are a kunoichi and a medic, not a goddamned house wife! I'm trying to look out for you in an age where we women have no rights and it is not easy to survive being so under appreciated."

The pinkette paused with a forlorn look, "Whoever I marry will have complete control over my life…there's nothing I can do." She looked at her scarred hands before clenching them, "If this is what awaits me for marriage then I don't give a shit. I'll become an old maid if I have to!"

"Will you stop being melodramatic!" Tsunade slammed her hand on the table silencing Sakura's pathetic rant, "I told you I would look out for you and I have. There is one candidate I think would be perfect for you."

Sakura glared at her mentor but kept her mouth shut waiting for her to continue. Her anger boiling just beneath the surface.

"He hasn't chosen a woman the past few matchmaking seasons because none of them lived up to his standard. He's picky but his position in life allows him to be. And he won't even look at another woman from within his clan because of their natural born arrogance." Sakura kept glaring wondering where this was going. "He's a very talented shinobi and would definitely support your continued training. While he may seem proud…it's actually a ruse. This man is rather shy and awkward with most people. Growing up as a prodigy does that to a person. But all in all Sakura…he's a good man. I think that if he were to accept you, which I think he will, he would make you very happy."

Sakura's face froze into one of shock. Her master was _actually_ recommending a _man_ for her to marry?

"Does he sound at all agreeable to you?"

She couldn't answer. She didn't know how any man could sound agreeable. With all the men she had ever met in her life they have always been the same. How could one man be different?

Tsunade sighed at her silence. She knew this wasn't going to be easy in the first place. A year ago Sakura had opened up to her and shared her traumatizing story when she was only a young girl. After that event Tsunade had been dreading this day. Sakura wasn't the type of woman who liked to be controlled, it meant she was weak. And everything her apprentice had been doing since she was six years old was to prevent her from ever being weak again. And now…with the current marriage laws in Konoha…there was no hope for a girl like her.

"Who is he?" she asked quietly.

"His name is…" she gulped knowing this would shock the girl senseless, "Uchiha Itachi."

Instead of shock that the amber eyed woman had predicted Sakura's eyes flared like molten lava, her anger rolling off her body in waves, "WHAT KIND OF SICK JOKE IS THIS?!"

"Sakura calm yourself!"

"NO! First it's my mother and now it's you!" she continued ranting, "What makes you think I'm at all suitable to marry the heir of the Uchiha clan! He's nothing but a stupid, creepy…ARGH!" She cursed because she still couldn't insult him properly…it was positively maddening!

"Be silent woman!" Tsunade shrieked and when she slammed the table…this time it broke in half. Sakura was stunned into silence at her master's odd display of power. The woman was always careful not to let it leak out…for her to do so she must be livid.

"Just shut up and listen to me," Tsunade proceeded with a business like voice, "I know this isn't what you wanted to her…and I promise I haven't been talking to you mother about this. But understand that it's common knowledge that Itachi is not married and is looking for a bride. Now I'm asking you to look at this from my perspective. Can you do that?"

Sakura reigned in her anger knowing that against her master it would do no good. Tsunade could play the stubborn game better than she could. Taking a deep breath to steady her rampant nerves she nodded.

"Thank you. Now being a matchmaker I am privy to all resumes and profiles on both men and women in this village. I use these profiles to create my matches…on a personal note I'm damn good at it. Of course for noble clans I have to take into account whether the woman is agreeable to the family as well before presenting them with a woman's resume. As such I know every single woman I have recommended to the Uchiha's and each and every one of the women I have presented he has turned down. In this regard my job as a matchmaker has failed. So in this sense I stopped and retraced my steps. I re-examined every resume I sent them and every one of those women were like the young girls you see outside. I realized then that Itachi isn't looking for a _weak_ female. He wants someone who is different. This is why I'm recommending him to you because a Sakura, you are not only different; your entire outlook on life goes against the tradition."

Her head was bowed as Sakura processed all this information. It made sense in a way that if he turned down every trophy woman who crossed his path that he would want someone different. But still…why her? She would make a terrible house wife and surely his family would never approve of her.

"Wh…" she cleared her throat and took a sip of cold tea, "What about his family?"

Tsunade smirked, "Uchiha-sama is fit to be tied with his eldest. He doesn't give a damn who the boy marries as long as he does. Itachi is twenty years old and according to Fugaku's expectations his eldest should have been married already with an heir born or on the way. This situation couldn't turn out more perfect even if I tried."

Sakura sighed, it was clearly obvious that Tsunade was proud of herself or the situation.

"Want to know what else I think?"

Sakura shrugged then looked up. Tsunade's tone of voice suggested she wasn't going to speak until Sakura looked at her.

"I think that Itachi doesn't want a wife…he wants a companion. He wants someone…to love."

Sakura's body shivered.

_Oh dear Kami…love?_

**Aren't you looking for the same thing too?**

Inner had a point, she conceded. But still…what if he turned out to be different? What if once she married him all those stupid things on that list were enforced on her and there was nothing she could do?

"Sakura don't over think this ok? Just take what I said and mull it over. Besides, I can only send the family your resume; it's his job to decide whether or not he wants to begin negotiations with your family. So take deep breaths and let's start working on your resume shall we?"

Sakura could only nod and began answering Tsunade's questions about her homemaking skills. Her brain ran on autopilot since the questions were only about her sewing capabilities and cooking skills. Those things were never very important to her and they probably would continue not to be low on her priority list even after she was married. Then on a separate sheet she started asking Sakura about her kunoichi studies. She could tell that Tsunade was taking significantly more time detailing the extent of her training and after they had finished her master rolled each of the scrolls separately and addressed them. Sakura thought it was odd but didn't bother to question it. All she wanted now was to go home and take out all of her pent up frustration on her dad's puppets!

"Alright here's your prize," Tsunade handed her a scroll, "Guard this with your life and make sure to only place _one_ on your body. Any more than that and you risk chakra exhaustion."

Sakura took the proffered scroll and place it in her purse, "Thank you."

Tsunade nodded then motioned for her to stand, "You're welcome. Train your ass off and I'll see you tomorrow to work on antidotes."

* * *

**Again a big shout out to Lollie-chan, i never would have thought up that list of requirements. That was truly brilliant on her part! R&R please :D**


	3. Chapter 3

**Cue the trumpets the next chapter is here. Yep i'm trying to stay consistent with my once a month updates considering i have multiple stories to write. i'm a few days late but i'll get better enjoy!**

* * *

Sakura walked home with a small but beautiful smile on her face which inadvertently drew the eyes of every male in the vicinity. Not that she noticed though her mind was preoccupied with thoughts of her matchmaker meeting. It didn't go at all as how she expected…ok maybe a little bit but if she was being honest with herself, which she was trying to do, then she was admitting that it wasn't the horrible nightmare she was expecting.

**My oh my…we see a side to Sakura that is hardly seen...**

_Hmm?_

**I mean you admitting that potentially being married off, is a decent idea.**

_I'm not admitting that. I'm just…pleased I guess that she has been thinking about me. She's not just gonna send my information off to some random clan. _

**Did you really doubt that she would?**

…_A little. _

**So much for having faith in your master, **her inner chided, **But out of curiosity shall we talk about Itachi?**

_Why?_

**Well let's just say that he is interested in you, and maybe someday in the near future your father gets a negotiation contract…**

She sighed, _Who am I to refuse an offer from an Uchiha? My rank practically makes that decision for me. My father would never turn it down so the question is a moot point anyway. _

**But-**

_No buts. This discussion is over. Even though my experience with Tsunade was a positive one and I am grateful for it because there is one important fact that I realized. All men are the same. Based on that list that I read every guy that I could end up with is expecting the same thing. They all want the silent trophy wives. _

**That's not true. Everyone is different.**

_I don't want to hear any more on the subject! So the man is picky about his wife, he's the Uchiha heir and like Tsunade-shishou said he has a righto be picky. Right now there is no evidence that the man is any different. The only thing we do know about him is that he's a shinobi and likes to spy on women. And if by some miracle he's different, which I highly doubt, I would still have his stuck up clan that would be expecting me to act like the demure and docile woman that I certainly am not! And if he has a shred of dignity in him then he won't offer my father a marriage contract. End of discussion. _

…**Sakura…**

_No Inner…please for now just let me forget about it. _

**We'll get lucky Sakura I swear! With the discussion with mom this morning-**

_Just stop! Please just stop talking about it! It's obvious that whatever happens to me the life I've known as a child will be no more once I get bartered off to a man. So let me enjoy the few moments I have left to be my own person without having to worry about pleasing a damn man._

**Ok…I'll stop.**

It wasn't a surprise when Sakura suddenly turned up at her home without even recalling how exactly she got there. It happened frequently that she would become so lost in her thoughts and discussions with her Inner. But oh well, she wasn't going to worry about not paying attention to her surroundings and leaving herself wide open for an attack. Right now she wasn't thinking like a shinobi…right now she was only thinking about herself as a woman; a woman whose life is about to irrevocably change.

* * *

Itachi found himself following Sakura again. Wait...when had he started calling her Sakura? He didn't even know how this had happened.

After Sakura had walked into the matchmaker's home he sat in the tree thinking about what he had just witnessed. The Yamanaka girl was slowly getting up with the help of some of the other young ladies, they immediately began helping her fix her damaged robe and hair. The Hyuuga heir only watched with an air of indifference before returning her gaze to the house as if she were waiting for her friend. Minutes passed and he waited…he didn't know why but something just told him to wait. He tried a simple listening jutsu wondering what on earth was taking her so long. Surely meetings with the matchmakers to create a woman's résumé never took this long. But his jutsu failed and he noted dryly that Tsunade-sama must have placed a seal around her house to prevent such jutsus from being used. A small tremor shook the house and the surrounding courtyard making all the women gasp and hold onto each other for balance. Hinata stayed easily on her feet but her hands went to her mouth and he could see the worry in her lavender eyes. After that he was determined to wait and see if he could glean anything from the pink haired object of his fancy. Another few minutes later and she finally emerged with a subdued visage. Her eyes were trained to the ground, her hands perfectly hidden beneath the folds of her furisode. Hinata calmly walked up to her.

"Are you ok?" she asked in a hushed whisper, "I felt the tremor…"

"Hai I'm fine. Tsunade-shishou she just…took me by surprise," Sakura admitted just as softly. She be damned if any of the other girls heard her speak about this.

"Do you need to talk about how you feel?"

Sakura sighed her green eyes trained to the bright blue sky, "I don't know Hinata. I don't even know what I should feel."

"Hyuuga Hinata!" Shizune called standing on the small porch.

"Go Hinata," Sakura looked back to her friend, "I'll see you later."

Hinata nodded and started walking away before turning around, "Tea…same time, same place. We will talk there Sakura-san."

She turned knowing that Hinata would wait for her answer before entering Tsunade's home, "Hai Hinata-sama. I will see you then."

Itachi knew he had never seen a more endearing smile on anyone's face than he did on Sakura's at the moment. It was obvious that Haruno-san held the Hyuuga heiress in very high esteem and always treated her with respect. Hinata in turn gave Sakura the same courtesy.

_They are close friends,_ he deduced in his mind. He also figured out why Sakura had been called first instead of the Hyuuga. Itachi heard her refer to Tsunade as being her master. Obviously the old matchmaker was playing favorites since even he knew the women were called in by rank, so technically Hinata should have been the first one seen.

As Sakura made her way across the courtyard the other clan girls parted, none wanting to stand in her wake. Obviously her earlier display with Yamanaka Ino made the rest of them wary. He smirked, she didn't even have to lift a finger and already she commanded the room. While she walked in confident strides, her aura was telling a different story. And so he decided to walk with her to wherever she was going. Of course his way of walking her meant he was concealed and hopping along the rooftops while keeping a close eye on her.

He supposed this coule be called stalking. Perhaps it did not apply to the Uchiha?

He took notice of how her eyes were completely hazy, signifying she was lost in her thoughts. He hadn't even spent much time around this woman and he already knew that her eyes were her most telling feature. He knew exactly what she was thinking at the Hyuuga's home, he knew that she was plotting in the courtyard of the matchmaker, and now he could see clearly that she was at war with herself. What he couldn't figure out was why? Didn't women usually come from the matchmaker's home smiling with their heads held high? But it seemed that her entire persona was…depressed? That couldn't be right what does she have to be depressed about? She's lived a quiet noblewoman's life. Even with the shinobi training that her father was probably overseeing that wouldn't be cause for her to feel such sad feelings.

The whole time she just kept walking and weaving expertly in and out of the throng of people. He could have sworn that she was going to walk into a huge sign with how distracted she looked. He really thought she would. It was big and hung about seven feet from the ground with the end of the board reaching her waist. She merely bent over backwards to swerve under it and turned in a circular motion her arms stretched out to steady her. And it as in that instance that he noticed something…odd?

_Is that…a scar?_

On the back of her hands leading to her wrist he could have sworn he saw a sliver of white. His eyes were praised for their vision and of how he never mistook anything for another. He was about to activate his sharingan in order to make sure but she refolded her hands into her furisode sleeves. But surely he had seen wrongly? The Haruno girl was a female and a noble. How could she have possibly acquired a scar? He knew of over a thousand women who would screech over the faintest mark on their bodies. Just the other day, his very sensitive ears had been tortured by the high-pitched notes of Uchiha Makuri's incessant yelling. His mother had later informed him that one of the new servants had scratched her calves slightly while giving her a body scrub. Apparently, she was going to get married and didn't want her husband-to-be to see her legs in such a "horrible manner". It was a pity that she had to change herself to suit some man's needs. She used to be so much more witty and interesting.

Itachi could not understand women. Why go to all the trouble of having someone give you a body scrub? Why not do it yourself? And why would you want a stranger rubbing their hands all over you. Furthermore, it was just a little nick at the calf. Just what on earth was so bad about that?

He felt someone's chakra flicker in the distance indicating that someone was tailing him. And he knew that if they sensed him then it was probably an ANBU which meant they were looking for him for a reason. Not wanting to be caught in a potentially questioning position Itachi straightened and dropped the genjutsu he was using to conceal himself. A second later he was joined by one of the new ANBU who wore a black, red, and white eagle mask.

"Karui-san."

"Uchiha-san, the Hokage calls for you."

Itachi nodded sparing Sakura's retreating form one final glance before disappearing in a swirl of leaves.

* * *

Within a tall and imposing building made entirely from stone lay a circular room filled with sealed cabinets and imposing bookshelves. One end of the room was lined with large windows overlooking the village. In the middle of those glass windows stood the Hokage, the leader and highest ranking official in the village.

It was strange to not see Sarutobi in his seat, particularly since it was his favorite seat, but the news he was delivering today was not going to be easy to tell.

"Hokage-sama!"

"Thank you Karui-san, you may leave."

"Hai!"

The moment the door closed the old man turned. He looked wearier than Itachi had ever seen. The Hokage extended his chakra over the room and past the doors, ensuring that nothing that would be spoken of within this room would reach others outside it. This meeting was going to be done under the strictest of confidences.

Next to Itachi, Hatake Kakashi poofed into the room the smoke quickly dissipating.

Hatake Kakashi was almost as much a prodigy as Uchiha Itachi was. He graduated from the Shinobi Academy in one year and becoming Jounin at the age of thirteen. He was older than Itachi by about eight years and had a far bit more experience that he did. Within the span of twenty-nine years, Hatake Kakashi had participated in at least two major wars and a few minor clashings with other hidden villages that practiced the different aspects of shinobi.

The one hidden village they often had troubles with was the Otogakure. They were well known for constantly allying with other angsty villages for war against Konohagakure.

Hatake Kakashi was also known as Sharingan Kakashi. Having the bloodline limit of the Uchiha's within one eye was what many of the younger ranking Uchiha clan members were sour about; especially since he could wield the bloodline better than they could. Still only a few people knew exactly the how's and whys of Kakashi's acquiring of the sharingan and Itachi was one of those men.

"Kakashi, Itachi, I have grave news," the Hokage began. They watched him with rapt attention, "The warriors of Sound have banded with the warriors of Rain, Mist and Cloud. As we speak, they are amassing a huge army to take us down. They must not reach the border of our village. Should they reach us, and we have to battle them at our front gates, we will have little chance of stopping them. We must confront them at the border, preferably not on Fire's own soil. Itachi, Kakashi, send word to every household, any man of sixteen and below fifty is to gather at the Courtyard of Zhou. Brief them and direct them to where they will go. Civilian or Bloodline you will train them to prepare for this upcoming battle in the outskirts of Fire. Hatake-san, you will assist and advise Uchiha-taichou in the leadership of these men. I want him to lead the younger generation; you have lived and commanded enough wars it's time for the younger men to take on the responsibility. Learn from this Uchiha-taichou. It will be a very important lesson."

Both men nodded obediently.

The Hokage took off his hat and ran a hand through his graying hair, "But, my two loyal warriors, that is not all. You must pick a few trusted men to train specifically in stealth to go undercover into Sound and stop something that could affect us horribly. I have received very…alarming news that I do not wish for others to hear, specifically the chauvinist Danzo. A new rise among Sound has started. Their leader, Orochimaru, has been mixing chakras and genes to create a new breed of warriors and has been using men as well as women for his experiments. Please understand, while here we do not allow the women to participate in any politics or training, over there Orochimaru has been encouraging it. Furthermore, these women are genetically mutilated to be mindless warriors for him, and surely you boys understand just how determined a rightly encouraged woman is?"

Indeed they did. A very good example was Tsunade-sama, their resident healer and matchmaker. She had fought in many of their wars, and to prove herself, had trained three times harder than her male counterparts. It was also a well-known fact that women tended to have better chakra control than men.

"The reason I do not wish for Danzo to know this is because he may take it one of two ways. One, he will shrug it off and deem it unnecessary for me to have extra warriors trained specifically for this and may even complain to the council that I am using more money for useless training. Or two, he could change his views and start forcing the beautiful and docile women of Fire Country to suddenly take part in such rigorous training. He may try to undo so many years of tradition at once and that would not work so easily. It is fine in Sound because Orochimaru reigns with a hand of fear, force, and bribery. The worst can only happen should Danzo find out. Do you understand the danger of this situation and the necessity for you to be discreet? Hatake-san, please prepare to recruit the men quickly. Uchiha-san, go home and study your battle plans and think up a training regime for the younger men that have not yet been a part of an organized army."

"Hai Hokage-sama!" They spoke in unison, and disappeared quickly.

* * *

Sakura opened the gate to her home slowly, her mind still heavy with her previous thoughts. She carefully lifted her skirt and walked across the garden stones carefully, displaying a rare moment of femininity. But she couldn't find it in herself to really care at the moment, but at least her mother would be happy.

She gently released her large skirt smoothing the surface to erase the small wrinkles. She walked slowly along the grass before coming up to the stable. Yoru poked his head out before walking up to the gate to greet his rider.

"Yoru-kun," Sakura smiled and reached out to touch his soft snout. The horse grunted softly and nibbled lightly on her fingers making her chuckle, "Oh Yoru-kun…you've never judged me. I can always trust you." The stallion grunted in agreement earning him a kiss on his nose. Kigechu poked his head out with a jealous hissing.

"Oh stop that Kigechu you know I love you too," Sakura smirked before also giving him a kiss, "And good work on Ino, I hope she doesn't bother me again."

After giving Yoru another kiss Sakura figured she had enough time to collect herself so her mother wouldn't notice the war inside of her. Being around her favorite and trusted animals always had a way of soothing her. Perhaps it was the unconditional love that only animals could give. Once you earn their trust they love you forever no matter what. They will always protect you and never try to beat you down.

_Ugh now I'm in a melancholy mood again…sheesh._

**That's what you get for thinking to deeply into simple situations. **

Sakura merely rolled her eyes and slowly walked up to the front door knowing her mother would be waiting for her in the front room. So she took a deep breath to steady herself, _find your center, _and walked through the front door.

"Mama, I have returned!" she announced easily picking up on the woman's chakra signature. She removed her geta after closing the door, thankful that she didn't have to wear those death traps any longer. Her mother walked out quickly with a worried expression on her face. Sakura assumed she had merely been worried about her behavior and rolled her eyes with a small smile.

"Sakura," She was pulled into a warm hug, "So everything went well?"

"Yes mama, Tsunade-sama helped me prepare my profile. And I'll confess that it wasn't as much as a disaster as I was expecting," She smiled.

Her mother patted her cheek lightly, "Ah…that is good. Good."

Sakura's smile disappeared. Something was wrong. Normally when she smiled or acted the way her mother thought she should a lovely bright smile would cover her face. And now after coming from the matchmaker and she told her that she had a decent experience, her mother should be doing cartwheels through the hallways. But all Sakura could sense was distress. Upon closer inspection, she noticed that her mother's usually perfectly round bun was in slight disarray and her grey hair was peeking out. Something her mother never allowed. Her normally bright complexion was sallow and her eyes were redder than usual. Even her clothing was rumpled.

"Mama, what is wrong, and where is father? Shouldn't you both have greeted me when I came home?" She asked wanting to get to the bottom of the situation and fast.

"Sakura, what-whatever makes you think something is wrong?"

"Mama, you raised me for sixteen years and I know when you are upset? You give me too little credit."

"Hmpf…your speech is too direct Sakura. If you're going to reprimand your superior then you need to speak in a more eloquent form. Such blatant disrespect will not go over well with the more noble families. If they don't look at you then I can't marry you off the way you want me to!"

"Mama! What in the world is going on?! Why are you yelling and acting this way?!"

"I'm not yelling at you Sakura and it's because your father-" and then she quickly covered her mouth.

Sakura's emerald eyes widened, "What is it that father told you not to tell me?"

"Oh, Sakura…it is nothing really…just...it's nothing at all...I...no, it is really nothing."

"Mother! I have a right to know especially if it concerns my father!"

Her mother flinched, Sakura was as stubborn as her husband and she had already said too much. Kyodu warned her not to talk to Sakura about it…but the cat's already out of the bag.

"Oh Sakura I want to tell you…but…" she couldn't say it…

"But what mama?" Sakura's eyes were a hard jade. Kiyari knew that look her daughter was not backing out. She had already dug her hole too deep to recover from. Well the least she could do was compromise.

"I'll tell you, but you must promise not to go after your father."

"Where the hell is dad?"

"Language Sakura! And I will only tell you once you promise not to go after him!"

"Yes mother, I-"

"You cannot walk, run, jump, leap, or run with your hands!"

"Mother, I am hurt you think I would do that."

"I know you better than you think Sakura," and she did which is why she put those stipulations on her. She has learned from past experience. There really was nothing her daughter couldn't do.

"Oh indeed mother."

"Do not patronize me, now about your father...it..." she cleared her throat, "It is important...I do not know the details but, I understand there is a war coming and...he was called outside and had to go somewhere. And you know how his leg is and I -! Sakura stop shaking me!"

"Mother! Where was he called to?! I have to stop him, he can't receive that summons! I have to stop him, I have to, I have t-" Sakura's eyes instantly turned from their hard jade to a frantic emerald.

"Sakura you will do no such thing! It is dishonorable, and you promised you would not do anything!"

After getting brief control over her emotion Sakura smirked lightly, "Mother, you never said I couldn't fly there."

That statement took a moment to register, "What?!"

She ignored her mother's pleas and concentrated on pushing her chakra outwards, forming large beautiful hawk-like wings. She then cast a concealing genjutsu over herself and ran out into the garden. She had not technically tried this technique yet but today was as good a day as any. It would definitely beat running there in this kimono which would take far too long to get out of especially since she couldn't do it by herself. With her eyes closed in concentration she breathed in, exhaled, and pushed. Her chakra was instantly lifting her off the ground.

_Slowly, slowly..._

Then with a quick burst of wind she took off, pulling and pushing the wind to her favor with her chakra wings spread straight out. She glided easily using a simple wind technique to keep herself afloat and control the direction she was flying in. But she was in a hurry and couldn't afford to slow down, not even slowing down to ruffle an already ruffled Ino. She needed to find her father.

She felt for her father's chakra. Using small amounts of her own to try and track him.

**There!**

It shined brightly and was coming from the Courtyard of Zhou.

The large horseshoe shaped stone arch was hard to miss. In a circular form, the stone walls covered the grounds. A dynasty ago, this place had been used for horseback fighting and training. But with the development of chakra, horsemanship was a dying art. And right now, it was being used as an assembly for recruits.

Landing easily out of sight she released the concealing genjutsu then performed a small transformation. Her father told her that he learned this from a connection he had made in a faraway village called Fang. In that village the shinobi specialized in transforming themselves into animals. "Like the shape shifters from your book," he told her, then she learned the hand signs to turn into a mouse. Once transformed, she scurried onto one of the large stones on the wall to observe quietly. She suppressed her heartbeat, steadied her breathing, and suppressed the rest of her chakra not being used to control this jutsu. Hopefully, all that would be seen on the stone wall was a small brown mouse.

**A mouse? Couldn't your dad have picked something cooler?**

_Who would suspect a mouse? It's the perfect form for spying which is why he learned it._

**Well for one thing, perhaps the retired ANBU Captain Hatake Kakashi? And oh, I don't know...YOUR FATHER? It's his stinking jutsu!**

_Shush your mouth! I will not be suspected. I have trained hard enough not to be detected. Now watch. I need to know what is going on. They will be too busy to even think about a damn mouse on a wall anyway._

**Ugh…**

The chatter instantly died once Kakashi stood. Sakura was glad she didn't miss the start of the meeting.

"You have all been called here today to defend our land," he started out with his typical cool but commanding voice, "The Sound warriors have banded with our enemies and they will try to ravage Fire Country. All men present are within the age range specified by the Sandaime Hokage. We need all able-bodied men to take up arms. After obtaining your scroll each of you are to return home to pack and will meet us at the outskirts of Fire Country. Within each of these scrolls are directions to the camp. From there the army will be separated into two groups: veterans of war and the younger generation. Now are there any cowards who wish to leave and shame your family are welcome to do so. Are there any objections?"

There were only the shaking of heads and smiles of pride and perhaps a little fear as each man came forward to take a scroll. She could recognize the Hyuugas, the Uchihas, some Inuzukas, and the mysterious Aburames. Most of the men here were young and fit while some of the older ones were merely in their forties, wise to the ways of destruction and physically ready for war. But her father was not. He may have had the best strategies and the cleanest, quickest kills, but his leg would slow him down. He was not the able-bodied warrior that the country was looking for. If he accepted that scroll…he would be killed.

She shivered as an image of her father came before her. A grey faced, sapped of life, attached to a body that was plunged through the heart with a broadsword; his blood staining the ground. Would he be remembered? And if he was... How was she to live with his death? How would her mother survive?

_She wouldn't…mother will never be able to handle his death. _

Without thinking she got down from the stone wall when her father limped forward, released the mouse jutsu, and rushed into the courtyard when she saw her father take a scroll. Murmurs arose through the crowd when the men noticed her entrance. Pink haired hair with flowers coming off, her geta nowhere to be seen and her kimono and tabi were dusty and dirty. But that wasn't what shocked the crowd of men. What really stunned them was the fact that a woman was present in this man only meeting.

**SAKURA NO! DON'T DO THIS!**

_BE SILENT!_

She flinched when she saw all eyes on her. Typically she would avoid this much male attention on any given day but…today was different. She had to be strong in the face of the most male attention she had ever received. Thousands of eyes were trained onto her…she needed to be strong. She gritted her teeth and walked as calmly as she could and stood in front of the man with silver gravity-defying hair and snatched the scroll out of his hands.

She swore she heard the sound of jaws dropping. If this situation had been a large elaborate joke, she would have laughed. But not now, today was serious.

"Please!" she started remembering her mother's censure to make sure she spoke to her superiors with respect, "Spare my father! He is old and his leg is crippled...I fear that if he accepts this call that-"

"Young lady, you should not be here. Do you not realize the consequences of what you are doing?" Kakashi cut her off with narrowed his eyes.

She quickly knelt on the ground, not noticing how Kakashi's eyes widened at her movement, as well as the plethora of other men present. She kept the scroll clutched firmly to her chest, "Please, honorable Hatake-san! I understand that what I am doing is very wrong, but I would rather risk myself now than to risk my father's life in the battlefield. Please! Please I beg of you, don't allow him to partake in this."

A man with a porcelain mask spoke, "A woman has no right to interfere with the business of men! Go home to where you belong!"

"Honorable Hatake-san, please…I will do anything I can do to prevent this! Anything at all…"

She was obviously not giving up easily. It seemed that Haruno Kyodu's stubborn personality transferred into his daughter. Well there was only one thing to do to get her to leave, "Would a noble woman like you agree to anything at all?"

"Yes anything!" She stared up at him hopefully.

"Would you lay in my bed then?" A collective gasp arose. To be propositioned as such was shameful...but Kakashi was sure she would refuse and then leave the meeting with her dignity intact.

"You... You..." Her gaze hardened immediately at his words. What…what kind of pig was this legendary warrior?!

"You said you would do anything. If I were to ask you to strip right here, would you?" His gaze remained uncompromising.

At this very moment Uchiha Itachi walked in, eyes widening when he saw Sakura there, on her knees. He was even more shocked when he heard Kakashi damning question. What was he trying to do to her? How could he suggest such a thing that would forever ruin her reputation!

"Or are you the typical woman who says that she will do something and then changes her mind?"

He had to keep challenging her so that she would see that her effort was futile and leave. To stay any longer under these circumstances would be damaging to her reputation and she had to know that. From eyeing her kimono and appearance it seems that today she met with her matchmaker. A girl of marriage-able who would be found in a compromising position would never be able to marry well. He knew that she was aware of this and he was certain that she would leave.

"I am no such woman. But to think that such an _honored_ man would ask this of a noble lady!" The men flinched upon hearing the iciness of her words, "My thoughts of you have only gone downhill now. But I am a woman who keeps her word _Hatake-san._"

Kakashi raised an eyebrow completely shocked.

"Perhaps someone will help me undo my obi?"

Itachi's jaw fell forward slightly, as did every other mans. Was she really going to strip? She couldn't possibly do this? She shouldn't even be put in this situation in the first place. Even if he hadn't gone and seen her at Tsunade's her dressing, albeit dirty, clearly showed she met with her matchmaker today. Was Kakashi determined to ruin her?

"So you will do it?" the silver haired ANBU asked blandly.

"Sakura, stop this! Leave at once!" Kyodu growled at his daughter. She couldn't do this because not only would she ruin her reputation she would also hurt the family honor. He and his wife would be seen as failures and not even the lowliest of farmers would want her.

"No father. I will not. And yes oh honorable warrior, I will indeed remove my garments as you requested. I said I would do anything, and thus I shall. I always keep my word. Removing my clothes is a small matter compared to your first treacherous request. I must say however, you may not enjoy the sight of my skin."

So she was going to go that far? Would she stop before she bare only what her future husband should see? Itachi was about to protest only to be stopped by Hatake.

"Hold on, I will not allow her to get far and neither will her father," He whispered into Itachi's ear.

"You should not have requested this of her in the first place," Itachi bit back, glaring at his superior.

Kakashi didn't reply to Itachi's harsh statement, "I am sure that I would young lady. Now go on Kumoka-san, help her remove her obi."

The man took out his sword and was about to slash it before Sakura stopped him, "This obi is made of high-grade quality silk. Please do not cut or rip it in any form."

The man grumbled and squatted down to help her untie the intricate knots of her obi. When finished, she pulled it away from her then folded and placed it neatly on the ground.

Itachi stared momentarily before turning around and leaving. As much as he wished to see Sakura undressed, he would not disrespect her in such a manner. He could see what Kakashi was doing, but it was still wrong. The fact that she agreed to this was scathing in its own regard. And her father was once an ANBU would follow orders without question. If Hatake was in charge of this…issue…then Haruno-san would say nothing.

Sakura didn't even seem to register his presence there, which he supposed he was grateful. But still he was interested in her. He could only hope that Tsunade would send him her résumé, but now he probably would never see it. Not with the way Kakashi was disgracing her, his father would never allow it. The reputation of the clan would force him to overlook her, even to see her as unclean.

He scratched his head slightly as he walked home. He needed to reconcile his premature feelings for the woman before he became too attached.

…But he wasn't sure if he wanted to…

She untied the sash around her waist and opened the top layer of her furisode, exposing the second layer of silk nagajuban, printed with cherry blossoms. Many of the younger "innocent" men quickly turned their heads away from embarrassment and the older men did so but with embarrassment for the girl.

Sakura did not like this. She was trying not to be shy or embarrassed with completely stripping herself because she did so to protect her family. It was an honor in its own right. But she had never shed her clothing in front of any man since that night. The memories were trying to force their way to the forefront but she pushed them aside. Now was not the time to dwell on the past.

She just disliked the whole point of it, and the fact that there were so many men watching her. A few of them were not. But if she could stop her father from going to the war she would even allow herself to be taken. To save the life of a beloved one she would pay any price.

She bit her lip as she shrugged off the furisode then folded it properly. The moment she had untied her first under layer the Hatake halted her.

"What is this? You ask for me to strip yet you stop me."

"I wanted to see how far you would go," he answered blandly, "To see if you truly would keep your word since so many young women your age are inclined to lie. And I hate to say that I cannot stop your father from going, only the Hokage can. Let this be a lesson girl…never allow yourself to be shamed and taken advantage of when you do not realize what you are getting into. Only stupid girls do that."

That was the last straw. She stood tall and defiant, not bothering to retie her clothing and stalked towards him. Anger was evident in her eyes and it rolled off her body in waves making some of the younger men cringe.

"How dare you!" she seethed, "How dare you to try to humiliate me! All those words merely to see how far I would go? And don't you dare tell me that I was being a stupid girl! You sir were less honorable in your demand than I was removing my clothing!" She walked right up to him and poked her dainty finger in his chest. "I stripped willingly and I was not being taken advantage off. You know why? Because I knew full well what I was prepared to do when I said anything. It was not a careless miswording on either your or my part. And do NOT take me for one of the foolish marriage-minded females in this village. Furthermore, I was not humiliating nor shaming my family, in my opinion, it was honor!"

He opened his mouth only to find her fingers shutting it close.

"I am not finished Hatake-san. It is impolite to interrupt a lady when she is speaking. Surely you were brought up with better manners than that." Her father reddened at her words. "I was ready to allow anything to happen to me. Yes, do not look at me that way. I said anything. It was you who stipulated the terms therefore any fault or dishonor in these proceedings fall onto your shoulders, not mine. You could have requested anything of me; even to have my flesh scraped from my body and my muscles stripped from bones, even to be taken by a Pig. Like. You." She emphasized her last three words with harsh pokes on his chest.

The surrounding men flinched at her words. This type of behavior, especially coming from a woman, made them uneasy.

"I believe that even the Gods above would take my side because filial piety is the most honorable type of sacrifice. And clearly you do not know that, suggesting that you have not kept yourself up with religious practices, or you would never have tried to shame me in this regard."

She stepped away from him and picked up her clothes, quickly re-tying her nagajuban and her furisode. She held her obi in one hand and walked to her twitching father.

Kakashi sighed imperceptibly. He tried to show what he thought was a cute little girl, who did not understand the ways of the world, to watch her mouth and be careful of her actions and he got a lecture from it. He supposed it did seem like he had tried to humiliate her. Many of the younger men were staring at him in resentment, but the older ones nodded at him with understanding. Obviously he wasn't the only one who thought she'd back down after his initial request. She was right on one account, he had made a right fool of himself. He just never expected it to come from some barely eligible woman of sixteen dressed in a rather stunning furisode.

"Father, I will go to the Hokage at once, please-

**SLAP!**

The entire crowd of men was silenced, not even the murmurs were heard. Haruno-san just struck his daughter. Sakura's face was turned to the side and she could feel a red mark beginning to form. This was the first time she had ever been struck by her father outside of training. And it wasn't his typical punch…no…this was a slap of disrespect. He was angry with her. Why? Did he not understand what she was doing? She was trying to save him from what was sure to be imminent death! She swallowed the lump in her throat and a metallic taste told her that her lip was bleeding slightly.

Amongst the crowd Neji and Sasuke stared at this show of violence. Their eyes widened in shock before quickly turning back into their stoic visage. Most of the men here were sons and husbands, many were married but some were not. And contrary to what Sakura thought, these men were not like the ones that were outlined in the requirements of the bride-to-be's. Those requirements had merely been something that had been instilled by the snotty and rude council members as well as the nobles of outside of the hidden village. As such they were shocked by the display of violence. Never in their life would they ever raise their hand against a woman. Especially one that was family.

"You dishonor me Sakura," he whispered under his breath, "Saying things like that and disrupting a meeting that wasn't meant for your ears. You should know your place."

"F-father…I... I..." Sakura looked up at him her emerald eyes asking for forgiveness.

He was not inclined to give it, "You have dishonored me enough. Do not dishonor me more by going to the Hokage. Should you do that, I will disown you."

Regardless of the low tones in which Kyodu was talking…in a silent room his voice echoed.

Despite being angry at his daughter Kyodu also felt extremely guilty. Not only had he just struck his beloved daughter and drew blood but he just threatened to disown her. Anyone who knew him would know that his threat was false. But his guilt really stemmed from before his harsh words. He had encouraged this behavior in Sakura, he always welcomed her cunning and intelligent personality. Whenever his wife would reprimand her unladylike behavior he would brush it off. So this situation…this dishonor…was completely on his shoulders. Everything she was, and everything she stood for, was all because of him and his training. He hadn't wanted to see her defenseless and at someone else's mercy again. So when she agreed to strip her clothing and bare all for the sake of him not answering the call to war, he was terrified for her. At that moment he wished his daughter was the demure and docile woman that was expected during this day and age; that way she would be at home and ignorant of these proceedings. He could see the anger in her eyes when she stood before Kakashi and knew she was reliving the moments from ten years ago. He also knew that Kakashi was not the most chaste of men and when he demanded that she lie with him…Kyodu wanted nothing more than to kill his fellow Captain. But Sakura bravely trudged on and he wasn't sure if he should feel proud or angry. His anger won out.

Sakura's tears silently streaked down her cheeks. Apparently her sacrifice was lost on him. So now to prevent further embarrassment to herself and to him she would do as he wished, "Yes father. I understand." She bowed once and walked out of the arched gate with her head held high. No one dared to stand in her way.

"Hatake Kakashi, forgive her rudeness, she is but a young girl with far too much impulse. My sincere apologies," Kyodu apologized stiffly not daring to look at the man.

_Just a young girl who happened to have a whole bucketful of guts, to come barging in like that with no fear of the repercussions, and to take said repercussions with such grace. It was not easy to do. If it weren't for the delicate circumstances I would be proud of her,_ Kakashi thought.

"Aah…she is a quite like you though, is she not?" He smirked under his mask. He knew Itachi had already left the moment the obi had come off. Young men were so easily embarrassed nowadays. Or perhaps he respected her too much to do it? Or maybe he, Kakashi, just had no shame considering he did enjoy visiting flower houses and reading his fair share of adult literature.

Haruno Kyodu just looked away and clenched his right hand, the stinging pain reminding him of his own failure.

* * *

Sakura had fled the moment she had step foot out of sight of the arched stone gate. Her tears came down in a hard stream now that she wasn't being watched. Her mother would be quite upset if she found out what had just happened. And with Sakura's weakened state she was determined not to show her face until her father arrived home.

But contrary to what she thought at first…she did not return home that night. Instead she sat in one of the large oak trees that overlooked the dining room. She watched her parents talk and eat, their shadows moving against the rice paper walls of their house. Her mother's shoulders shock slightly whenever she picked up her tea cup to drink. Her father's back was straight and rigid and she could vaguely tell that he was trying to remain stoic. This wasn't what she wanted…not this broken and stilted family. She wanted the peaceful happy dinners where her mother would comment on something trivial, like Sakura's sewing, and she and her dad would wave it off.

She would do whatever it took to protect her family and the peace and happiness of her home. And despite how shaky her mother seemed, she knew it wasn't because of her dishonor. No…she was terrified of losing her husband. She could not..would not allow her mother to be heartbroken. It would be better for them to lose a daughter than to lose the head of house. Besides wouldn't it be better for a dishonored daughter to die than to continuing living and shaming the family?

Her eyes narrowed in determination, her mind quickly thinking up the quickest and best strategy.

She waited until the lights went out in their bedroom, then another thirty minutes before sneaking into her room. She disrobed easily considering her obi was already undone. She took care to folded her kimono neatly and placed it inside her closet with the rest of her clothing. Would she ever get to wear it again? Probably not, she was taking her father's place on the battle front. She quickly threw on her favorite red training outfit and began packing clothes for a few days. She packed some salves and extra binding cloth as well as bandages. Her pack was nearly full and she filled the rest of it with rations her father always kept around for snacks. Sneaking quietly through the halls Sakura entered the training area and grabbed her kunai pack and filled it to the brim. She also grabbed her tanto and strapped it to her back. Her father did try to get her into kenjutsu but Sakura preferred the short sword and her power punches. A quick search of her father's prayer room and she found the scroll sitting by the incense bowl. Sakura knelt by the bowl and looked up. Above her were pictures of the past heads of the family. Her father often came here for guidance on how to lead the clan and how to continue to honorably uphold their name. Lighting incense and placing it tenderly into the bowl, Sakura knelt before the powerful men.

_I'm sorry father but I can't let you do this. Mother's happiness is more important than my own. Please forgive your dishonorable daughter. Honorable leaders…please guide me and help me restore my own honor in my father's eyes. If it be by giving my life for my country in the line of duty then I will do so. Give me strength to do what is necessary. _

Slowly sitting up Sakura collected the parchment wrapped scroll and tucked it away in her weapon's pack. It was now almost midnight as she saddled Yoru and took him out of the stables. She walked to the stone ancestral pavilion a hundred paces from the house. There she stopped by a small pond and watched the fish swim slowly under the full moon. She took a big breath, the smell of moisture indicated it was going to rain soon. The clouds were rolling in.

_This is it..._

**Let us enact the first part of our plan.**

Removing her tanto from its sheath Sakura stared at herself in the reflecting surface. Her tanto was raised and she sliced her hair at the shoulder. Her long, luscious pink locks fell to the ground in a large heap. Sakura could admit she never really liked the color pink, weak and vulnerable girls like that color. But there was nothing she could do about her hair. Another issue was she was the only woman in the entire village with that unique color. Her mother did tell her once that pink ran in her family but it hadn't shown for generations. And she was going undercover, so a new shade was in order. Calling upon her medical ninjutsu she changed it to a dirty blonde, a similar shade to her father. Grabbing a hair tie from her large pack she pulled her hair back and tied it at the nape of her slender neck.

She still looked feminine though. This next part was going to hurt a bit and she placed her green lit hands on her jaw. She numbed the pain before reshaping the bone. It cracked under her ministrations before she stopped the jutsu and looked back into the pond.

_I look just like dad._

**Save for the eyes, but I'll admit it's pretty similar.**

She pressed some chakra into her uterus, sealing it and preventing any untimely moments. Going undercover as a guy would be ruined pretty quickly if all of a sudden her monthly friend decided to show up.

**Tsuande-shishou is a genius for developing this jutsu.**

_Yes remind me to thank her for it when we get back._

**No need to be snippy.**

Going over her appearance one last time she determined that was about all she could do. So she mounted Yoru, secured her bags, and rode off into the night. But not before casting one long look at her home…hoping and praying that she would live to see it again.

* * *

It was storming and the thunder roared in the skies while lightning illuminated the way. Haruno Kiyari tossed and turned, sweat poured from her skin soaking her nightgown.

_Sakura...Sakura..._

It was storming within her dreams. Her daughter was seen fighting another man. Sakura riding on a sleek black stallion, garbed in bloodied armor and a small sword in her hands. She was fighting savage looking men…monsters. She was giving her all. And she tripped. One man smiled cruelly and brought his large mace down on her.

_No! No!_

"SAKURAAAA!" Her mother screamed in terror as she awoke from her nightmare.

"Kiyara, what is wrong?!" Her husband asked waking instantly. Kiyari was shaking from head to toe.

"Sakura! Sakura! Where is she?!" She ignored her husband's question and ran through the corridor as fast as she could and pushed open the door to her daughter's room. It was empty and her furisode she wore today was lying neatly in her open closet.

Haruno Kyodu feared the worst, _She couldn't have…_

He immediately ran to his prayer room, hoping it wasn't true. That Sakura was not so foolish as to do this. He burst through the door and instantly saw that his wish was not answered. Sakura had left with the scroll. The scroll he was meant to take in the morning when he reported for duty.

"Kyodu! We have to stop her!" Kiyari yelled as she leaned against the door of the prayer room.

"We can't..."

"What do you mean you can't? Sakura could die! She is just a girl...she...she..." She covered her face with her palms and began wailing as she fell to the floor.

Kyodu called upon his past shinobi training and went to hold his hysterical wife, "If I were to tell them that she is a girl and my daughter...she could be executed. And I cannot have that. She's the only one we have Kiyari. All we can do is hope."

And all Kiyrai could do was sob into his shoulder. What would happen to Sakura, that silly girl who had an abnormal fear of men? Now she's throwing herself into the lion's den, for what? Why would she do this to herself and to her family?

For the first time in his life Haruno Kyodu, former ANBU Captain of Konoha, could merely stay back and hope for the best; praying that his little girl would not have an untimely accident and return home to them. She was heading into war…and he knew from experience that anything could happen in war.

* * *

**Review Review please! **

**Ok now to clear up the air a bit, please do not be offended. Some of you have commented that i have changed the story too much. Well...for one i'm not LoLillie and i cannot write like her simply because it's not my style and i'm not her. But prior to writing this story I did chat with her to discuss the fic and what she would like to see. We talked about plot and i asked her if she had anything planned. This is her fic originally and i want to make it a tribute to her. One thing she did mention that she would like to see is more of Sakura's fear of men. She felt that she progressed through it too quickly and wanted that to be fixed. So i did. And keep in mind that despite the incident that happened ten years ago, Sakura is a sixteen year old girl, her hormones do influence her train of thought. Yes she can think herself beautiful and admire the male form despite her fear masked as hatred. (This is coming from some personal experience which i drew on the write that scene). **

**Also i had a request to get rid of Inner Sakura. Alright my readers your wish is my command BUT i can't just write her out since she's already in the story. And i have created a plan to slowly but surely get rid of her so never fear, she will disappear! That was an unintentional rhyme, and i apologize for that. **

**Thank you thank you for sharing those thoughts with me so that i can 1: address them and 2: fix anything that you want to see fixed. I appreciate it and i will never take your flames personally. **


	4. Chapter 4

**I know it's been forever...i apologize. For a detailed description see the AN below. Happy reading! And don't forget to review!**

* * *

Sakura rode her horse as quickly as possible, and silently as possible through the village. She knew she had to get out of there as soon as possible before her father sensed that she was gone. If he caught up to her while she was still in the village…there'd be hell to pay. But that didn't matter because in the next few seconds she was out of the village gates…nobody could stop her now.

"Sakura!"

Sakura instantly reigned Yoru in. Tsunade-sama appeared right in front of her, effectively causing her horse to jerk suddenly, sending Sakura up and out of the saddle. Acting on instinct she pulled her knees into her chest, flipped backward and landed lightly on the ground.

"Tsu-Tsunade-sama..." she gasped, shocked to see her master standing in front of her.

"You baka!" She slicked her forehead, effectively sending her to the ground, "What the hell do you think you're doing!?" Sakura bit the inside of her cheek. Now was as good a time as ever to find out if her acting skills were good enough to fool even Tsunade-sama. Hopefully the elder woman didn't hear her slip up before.

She stood up straight and pulled her shoulders back. "Healer-san. Perhaps you have the wrong person?"

"Oi! Don't try faking it you bloody fool! And I heard you call me Tsunade-sama just now."

Fail, apparently the woman could hear well in the sprinkling rain. Still best to play dumb, "I really do not understand what you are trying to say."

**SMACK!**

"Itai!"

"Don't you try to fool me Sakura! Any other warrior worth his salt would have reflexively moved away from my hand! You are the only idiot I know that would train yourself to bloody stay in place! Deserving punishment my foot!"

Sakura realized she was absolutely defeated, this woman was just too damned stubborn. Oh well at least she could explain and hopefully Tsunade will understand. That is if the woman would let Sakura actually defend herself…

"Who do you think you're fooling you idiot? You could certainly fool the men; maybe go as far as fool the General who will be training you, but not me! How many times have I had to send my life-force after yours just to coax the stubborn thing to fill your body! I've done it at least a hundred times! From you poisoning yourself with that nasty toad to using that axe wrong and almost hacking off your arm! You have nearly died so many times Sakura! Our chakra and life-force are bonded in such a way that cannot be hidden from either person! You just don't have the Yin seal yet, so you can't feel the full extent of it."

"But shishou!"

"But what? So what if you can change the pattern of your chakra? And so what if you can force the directions of your life-force to swirl differently? You may be able to change your energy imprint and mix it around with nature energy, but you can never hide from me! Nothing short of replacing the essence of who you are can take away the bond between our life-forces!"

The older woman finally stopped but only to take a deep breath and compose herself, "Sakura if even I can tell that you are you, then so will Hatake and Uchiha. To the naked eye, you may look like a boy, but your disguise could fall apart easily. Your chakra signature is too similar to your own current one. You need to change it enough that even I will have trouble spotting it. "

"Soooo," Sakura gulped slightly, "You're going to help me? How did you know I was here?"

"Well..."

"Don't say it was the bond. You've told me that when I suppress my energy, along with everything else, even you cannot get a read on where I am."

"Ah well you see, as the first Hokage's grandkid I have connections all over the place so when I heard about the war recruits I thought your dad might get called up. And then I heard about the stunt you pulled during the meeting and I thought to myself…if Sakura -man-hater could do that...then she was bound TO DO SOMETHING COMPLETELY IDIOTIC AND STUPID!"

Sakura flinched then glared, "But you-"

"I'm not finished!" Tsunade commanded her to stay silent, "It was quite easy to find you because you just forgot to suppress that tiny bit of chakra in Kigechu. Remember you share a similar chakra signature. But I could only read it because I knew it was there. Typically his signature is too small and overpowered by yours to really be sensed."

"Oh..."

"Yeah! Oh!"

"So…other than to yell at me..."

"I came to make sure nothing was out of place. And that anything incriminating was covered and would not be found!"

"So you didn't come to call me stupid and drag me back home?"

Tsunade put her hands on her hips, "Now why would I do something like that?"

"Because I'm idiotic and stupid and a man-hater and you're trying to look out for me," Sakura replied with her own hands on her hips.

Tsunade just smiled, "I'm not here to stop you. I'm here to help because with the way things are going and the fact behind the rumors…they will need you. Not as a man but as a woman…they just don't know it yet."

Sakura could only smile.

"Now, first of all Hatake Kakashi and Uchiha Itachi are going to be the training commanders for the new recruits. They have the sharingan meaning that they would most likely be able to see even the smallest of lies in the actual truth, so make sure your silver tongue is up to par. Watch, in particular, your physical signs of lying. That damned eye can read everything even if it's not turned on." Sakura nodded in understanding.

"Next, I'm pretty sure the Hyuugas, Inuzukas and the Aburames will be there. Most annoying troublesome batch of clan kids but they are talented," she huffed, "The Hyuuga eye will be able to see how feminine your structure is as well as differentiate a feminine chakra with a male chakra."

Emerald eyes widened in surprise.

"The Inuzukas can often sniff out people based on a distinctive scent of theirs. Not to mention years of living with animals have made them quite adept at sniffing out the different genders."

Oh Kami-sama…this mission was over before she started. Right now she couldn't be more grateful that Tsunade stopped her. It didn't even cross her mind that she…smelled feminine…or her chakra signature would give her away as such.

**Keep paying attention, she's going to lecture first then perfect. You know the drill.**

_I know! It's just…I should have thought of this myself._

**Well you didn't so shut your face and pay attention. **

"Now as for the Aburames…they are like an insect variation of the Inuzukas. Bear in mind Sakura, your scent is so very incriminating amongst warriors like them. Being able to tell male from female is a basic instinct to them. With that said you have to be very careful during your cycle week."

Sakura didn't think her eyes could get wider but they did, "Tsunade-sama…I can't get caught! Give me something that can help please!"

"I was hoping you would say that," her smug look got even smugger, "Alright, with the problem of those scent crazies you will have to change the imprint of your smell. Much like you did for your chakra. It should not be too difficult for you. Now close your eyes and concentrate on any male chakra you can find alright? Pick a civilian someone you've never met, reach out with your chakra and feel."

Sakura did as instructed and found a lower ranking civilian boy nearby to copy, "I got one."

"Now, instead of feeling for his chakra, feel for the liquid and glands within him. Yes it will feel disgusting but the point is to mimic his chakra signature and smell. Have got it?" Sakura nodded, "Good, now mold your own glands so that it would feel similar."

"Shishou…this feels so odd…and strange..."

"Well you are mimicking a man so get over it. Male bodies and female bodies have different hormones balances so naturally you will feel weird."

Tsunade waited until Sakura completely finished synching with the male "chakra donor."

"There I have a full latch on him."

"Good now perform these seals: Boar, dragon, ox, dog, rat. Fuin."

Sakura performed the seals recognizing the pattern, "Fuin. Shishou that's a medic binding seal."

Tsunade nodded slightly proud that her protégé recognized the seals, "Hai it is. We use it only in dire circumstances to keep the patient stable enough for transport to a secure location. It will work perfectly to throw off the Inuzukas and Aburames who specialize in scent since you now smell like that man instead of like the woman you are. The Hyuugas would be harder to get past, particularly Neji. His Byakugan is of fairly high mastery and he can tell the different chakras from a male and female as well as see your skeletal structure and chakra points in the body. Now, I am sorry Sakura, because this will be painful and uncomfortable for you."

"What?"

"You need to keep a constant stream of chakra at your pelvic bone and harden it so as to fool him into thinking that you have a narrower bone than you really do. You're actually fairly curvy Sakura and women have larger hips than men naturally, comes with the fact that we're meant to give birth. Anyways, it should come fairly naturally to you, but there is one side effect..." Her lecturing voice turned a little…mischievous, sadistic…she couldn't rightly tell.

"Shishou..."

"We'll you'll find out the moment you put it in action, no sense in having you freak out about it now. Ah, as for when you have your period. I have the perfect idea for you! You have sealing scrolls do you not? Yes? Good! And you know how to thicken your walls so that it would take the blood longer to accumulate and come, but in a much smaller amount, correct? Okay good. I have developed something and Shizune finds it most useful, albeit a bit painful."

"Shishou, I've already taken care of my cycle," Sakura stated.

Tsunade's eyes widened, "How?"

"Remember that seal you were working on…"

"Ahh," Tsunade smiled widely, "Well I guess this mission for you will christen it. Make sure to keep track of your body functions and feelings so we can record the findings officially. And if you need to…release the blood because of the buildup then please be careful about it. The last thing you need is your cover to be blown sky high because every sensor type male will be drawn to the smell of blood. Probably a running river would be best, so take a midnight swim if you have to."

Sakura nodded.

"Now, about your breasts..."

All of a sudden her brilliant plan was getting more and more…complex. But this was for her father's safety and the safety of the village so she will have to make do.

"Shishou what are you going to do now?" Sakura had just about had enough.

"I'm not doing anything. I doubt Neji can go as far as to see anything more delicate than bones. Especially since breasts are mostly fat and skin which is typically invisible to the Byakugan."

"You doubt?"

"Well there is no Hyuuga in history who has been able to see it so I'm guessing even his superb doujutsu can't either."

"Alright. Now getting back to the pelvic bone, what is the side effect you glossed over?"

"Why should I tell you everything can't you figure it out?"

Sakura stood with her arms stubbornly crossed.

Tsunade sighed, "Simply put, the pressure you are now putting on your uterus would just…get you more tingly than usual..."

"Tingly? You mean …you have got to be kidding me! I am a very sensitive individual Tsunade-sama! And around those…those…ARGH!"

"Yes, well if you keep a constant stream there you'll get used to it. Better to always feel it than to get a very pleasurable jolt every time you send chakra there for upkeep hmmm? Just make sure it blends in with the bone and you'll be fine."

Suddenly everything began to feel too much. She already placed a medical binding seal on herself and even she could tell she smelled…different…Kami did this man not know about deodorant? It was official, she was going to be concentrating so much chakra on her body that she wouldn't have any left for anything else, "What am I? A medical wonder?"

"Well you are adept at using medical chakra for hours on end so this should be easy for you."

Sakura grumbled to herself.

**Grow up and get over it. This is what you wanted to just deal!**

_When I want your opinion I'll ask for it!_

"Oh one last thing…since you claimed that you are so _sensitive_, seal of your juice glands."

"My juice glands? What are you talking abo- oh...OH! Tsunade-sama!"

"Well it is not my fault you are so sensitive..."

"Okay…fine…what else could I possibly need to know?"

Sakura was ready to accept any other ridiculously medical nuance that she would have to know to make sure that everyone around her knew she was a man instead of a woman. What she wasn't prepared for was the serious tone in which her master addressed it, "Cover up any scars that you have, particularly any visible ones."

Sakura's face blanked, "That's quite the number of scars shishou..." That was true. She had a few thick ones on her hand; large scrapes that never really recovered were on her legs and fatal injuries that had left their marks on her neck.

"Whatever. Just create some skin on top of the recognizable ones. The only other option you have is wearing pants or long sleeves all the time. Now I'm not an expert on their training routines but I'm fairly sure you won't want to have every inch of your body covered all the time. It's coming up on summer and it's getting warm, you'll stand out with that obvious difference.

Sakura nodded in understanding, Kami she hated when her shishou was right, "Anything else?"

Tsunade shrugged, "Your eyes."

"What about my eyes?"

"They are the only green eyes in our village! Not technically but I've seen many green eyes and yours hold that slight sparkle inherited from your mother. Dull them and they can be passable as a sibling."

"Well I am going as my own brother..."

Tsunade nodded relaxing her lecturing stance, "So what's your name?"

"I think, something closer to my name so that I would recognize it. How about...Saburo? Or Shiro?"

She snorted, "Are you really that stupid? Choose something that isn't incriminating at least."

"It isn't incriminating," Sakura bristled but immediately calmed herself, "Besides I'm having to remember a million other things I want my name to be easy at least."

"Point taken but pick something different. Saburo mean third son, you would have to make up another sibling! And you're not a bloody samurai you're a kunoichi posing as a shinobi."

Sakura growled then thought again for a name that sounded similar to hers but not quite the same, "Setsuna."

Tsunade immediately smacked her upside her head, "What part of that makes you think you fit the name. Setsuna, calming snow, are you going to tell me that along with everything else you're going to change your personality to resemble your name!"

Sakura grumbled while she rubbed the back of her head, "No…"

"Pick again!"

Thinking harder she produced another name that _hopefully_ passed Tsunade's scrutiny, "Seito."

"Hmmm," the buxom blonde pondered, "I like it. You've poured my sake on many occasions and drank with me as well. You can use that to your advantage if put in a tough spot. Not many places sell the 'high quality stuff' if you get my drift."

Sakura rolled her eyes, "Nobody drinks sake as pure as you do shishou."

That comment made the older woman laugh, "Right you are so in any other circumstance you'll be able to hold your liquor well. And since you like to go riding at night that covers the rest of the name. Alright…it seems you're finally ready to go."

Sakura nodded solemnly, "Yes…I think so."

"Sakura…be careful. If you come back dead I'll bring you back to life just to beat the-"

Sakura cut off her threat with a large hug, "Hai shishou, don't drink so much while I'm gone okay? It'll drive Shizune-nii-chan crazy."

"Tch Shizune is such a spoil sport…"

Sakura giggled slightly then released her and mounted her horse, "May I make a request?"

Tsunade nodded small tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

"Watch over my parents. Help them in case things get a little…dicey while I'm away."

Tsunade smiled lightly, "Don't worry about them Sakura. They will be safe while you're gone."

Sakura nodded, fighting back her own tears, "I'll see you soon Shishou."

"Yeah, yeah now hurry up and go!"

* * *

Sakura felt a rush riding Yoru through the forest at top speeds with the wind in her hair. It was an incredibly satisfying feeling. But she felt this only for a moment. It was going to get serious when she got to the camp and before she even entered she had to…modify her pelvic bone.

_Not looking forward to that at all…_

She did not know what training the ANBU warriors had in store for all of them, but whatever it was, it would not be easy. But with all the training that her own ANBU father put her through…she was all that worried about what they would throw at her. She'd take it in stride and come out on top.

**Oi…If you would pay attention for a moment, you would realize that IT IS ALMOST NOON! CAN'T YOU SEE THE SUN? We have to report in a couple of hours and if you want time to get your mind and body right then…**

Oh crap. She was right. Damn it how was she going to get faster? She didn't want to completely tire out Yoru by pushing him farther than his limits. They had at least another ten miles or so and if she hadn't gotten lost. Well could you blame her, it was her first time actually traveling out of the village. But maybe if she helped him along…

Sakura breathed in and let her chakra out as she exhaled, she sent it gently into her horse's system, coaxing it slowly into letting her enter.

One.

Two.

Three.

And she sent a large burst of chakra through its limbs forcing them to go almost ten times its speed. Yoru gave an excited cry at the burst of speed as they continued to race through the woods. What should have taken another four hours of travel only took her an hour. Now she was early giving her time to compose herself before entering the large encampment below.

"Ok, breathe, focus, concentrate. Just act normal, nobody will question what you're doing there since you have the summoning scroll," Sakura closed her eyes and stretched her limbs. She had to remain calm so that her next few lies wouldn't be detected. She figured that if she got through the first few days without any hiccups then she was golden. So performing the necessary jutsus Sakura could instantly feel the tingling effects the chakra had on her pelvic bone.

**You know…it's a good thing you hate men or else this would be really, **_**really **_**hard for you.**

_Don't I know it? Alright so here's the plan. We're gonna play this like we would anything else. I know I'm good__and I'm going to make sure everyone knows it. _

**Agreed, it's best to play similar personalities that way it's one less thing to think about.**

_Exactly, my back story is set,_ she took a deep breath and mounted Yoru again, _Alright…let's do this._

**Shannaro!**

There was a small path that led into the camp; it looked like it was made by numerous people walking into from this general area rather than anything purposefully made. There was a small table set up just inside with a sign that read check in. Dismounting she led Yoru up to the table.

"Scroll," the man seated asked looking up from a large scroll in front of him.

Sakura wordlessly handed hers over.

"Haruno?" the man looked up at her, "You're not Haruno Kyodu."

"Obviously," Sakura rolled her now dull green eyes, "I'm his son, Haruno Seito."

"A son?"

Sakura didn't say another word and just stared with a blank look.

The man cleared his throat, "Alright then, instead of reporting with the regular corps you'll need to be enlisted into the training corps. Set up your tent and supplies anywhere in either rows four or five. Stables are set up next to the edges of camp, your horse can stay there for the duration of training."

Sakura nodded, "What exactly is this training for?"

"Formation set ups and large scale attacking. Those who are civilians with no shinobi training will be drilled on proper techniques while the clans will continue their regular trainings."

"Well I have shinobi skills so does that change anything?" Sakura asked.

"Oh," the man looked slightly surprised.

Sakura cocked an eyebrow, "What? My father was an ANBU Captain you think I wasn't trained in shinobi arts?"

The man adjusted his collar before scratching her name and rewriting it elsewhere, "My mistake. I assumed-"

"That I had no talent which is why you've never heard of me," Sakura finished easily, "And my family lineage is full of civilian silk transporters. I get it. I'm not offended but will that change my set up area."

"Hai, you can set up your gear in either rows one through three. Horse still has to stay in the stables though."

Sakura nodded taking her scroll back, "Thanks."

Walking towards the designated section she scanned around to find a suitable spot for her camp. There was a small tree at the end of row two that look like it could use a friend. Sakura led her companion over to it and began her set up. After she finished, she led Yoru to the stables, petting him gently before she left.

_Here goes nothing…time to mingle._

**We got this.** Sakura could feel her inner smiling in anticipation.

She took a deep breath, and strode in with all the confidence she could muster and blatantly ignoring that damn tingling in her lower regions. What she didn't count on though was the attention she brought to herself. Her height and hair color would originally have been enough for her to stand out as a woman. Coupled with her attention grabbing strides she had made herself out to be a contradiction from the typical woman. And it seemed that even as a man her confidence drew people's attention to her. Oh well, she was gonna get noticed anyway.

One large tent read "Mess Hall" and she walked towards it. She sat down at one of empty wooden tables and surveyed her surroundings discretely. Long wooden benches were around each long table and the line for food was at the northern end. The whole place stunk of rice, not that rice was particularly fragrant but it was definitely all she could smell. There was also quite an amount of unrefined rice wine. Probably, at most…twenty percent of alcohol…child's play compared to Tsunade's stash. Right now she was wishing for a cup of two.

As soon as Sakura sat down, all the other younger men of her generation surrounded her and what was worse…it was the clan boys. Among the many faces were Uchiha Sasuke and Hyuuga Neji. This meeting will be interesting and crucial. She was sure they were going to try some type of ploy to see what kind of guy she was. Well she was gonna show them that she wasn't a push over.

"Hey! We've never seen you around before. Are you new?" She looked to her left to see a blonde-haired blue-eyed by talking to her. So this was Namikaze Naruto close up he was still rugged and tanned, fairly easy on the eyes and he seemed nice as always.

**Now would be a good time to see if he would be good enough for Hinata.**

_Ooooo, nice idea Inner._

"First of all, I do believe you are not speaking for the others, and no I am not 'new' as you say, rather you merely have never seen me before," Sakura replied in a monotone voice not even bothering to keep eye contact. She merely lounged easily in her chair, unaffected by their presence.

"What! Are you some kind of rude asshole?! I was just asking a question." Strike one; he could not deal with insults.

"Yes I do have an asshole. But no, I am not as rude as you are."

"Why you...you!"

Strike two; short temper. _He's way too much work Hinata. He'd drive you absolutely crazy. _

"Yes…you, is a pronoun of the second person used either singular or plural and also used of the person or persons being addressed, in a nominative or objective case. Hence to repeat it twice in succession is unnecessary." She was now beginning to wonder why the other boys haven't gotten involved. A quick glance around told her they were content to observe her reactions to Naruto. Pity, he was already getting boring.

**SMACK!** His hand hit the table in front of her.

"You bastard!" He shouted officially on edge. Just one more push and he would be a goner.

With a slightly cheeky smile…she pushed, "I do believe I am not a bastard. Are you by chance one?"

"You!" He leapt up with a bowl full of rice and threw it at her with what he perceived to be fast and something that could not be dodged. Pity. She only had to turn her head slightly to the side and the bowl soared easily past her and into the other table.

"YOU'RE GOING TO BE SORRY! KAGE-BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!" Suddenly over ten Narutos popped up and jumped towards Sakura, who anticipated his move and poofed into smoke. The real Sakura was up in a tree that hadn't been there a moment ago, outside the tent.

"GAAHH! WHERE ARE YOU?!" Naruto ran out of the Mess Hall his head searching from side to side. She groaned inwardly.

**Is he incapable of looking up?**

_This is who we have to defend our country and homes? It's a damn good thing I'm here._

"I'm here," she called from where she was standing precariously on the edge of a tree branch, her arms folded, "Now you ought to calm yourself Namikaze-san. I doubt Hinata-sama would want someone so hot-tempered."

This received a raised brow from Neji and a few other clan boys. How did this guy know Hinata-sama?

Her statement also had Naruto stopping dead in his tracks, "How do you know about her? And how would you know what she liked?"

"Well it is quite simple really."

"Is it?" Neji asked staring up at the young man, "Do tell us then or perhaps you can tell us your name first."

"Ah…so the Hyuuga is interested in my name, eh?" Time to start the background story, "A lot of help you lot were letting my sister strip down in front of you yesterday. And you call yourselves gentlemen!" She ended with a righteous glare and jumped from the tree branch.

"You're a Haruno?" Neji clarified, eyes narrowing. It was obvious he wasn't the only one who didn't believe it. Although he had seen the retired ANBU Captain before and the…boy standing before them did hold a certain resemblance.

"Yes Hyuuga-san. I am the brother of the woman that pulled that stunt yesterday. And yes Namikaze-san, whose mouth is opened like a gaping fish, I do know what sort of man Hinata-sama likes."

_Hold it? Hinata-san?_ Sasuke thought to himself, _What's this guy playing at? He's not a simple one to be trifled with. Considering that he had pulled a tree out of nowhere. Genjutsu?_

"Hn, dobe. You're making a fool of yourself."

"Who's the dobe, teme! Get him!" Now all the Narutos ran at Sasuke, who shushined and appeared next to Sakura.

Sakura stiffened at the sudden closeness of the man. Why did her body react that way? What was he doing so close to her anyway? This was only gonna harder and harder if the first time a man stood next to her she froze like a popsicle. Not to mention the side effects of sending chakra to her pelvic bone was making her horny. Thank Kami she had already sealed every single thing.

She took a couple steps away from Sasuke, earning a questioning look from him. Kami she hated men.

"I like my personal space Uchiha," she replied as nonchalantly as she could, "You'd do well to remember that."

"Hn," He smirked.

Why that cocky no-good overtly sexy piece of meat...Kami she was going to have to censor her thoughts with the way her body reacted favorably to that train of thought. _Damn it!_ And why were all the men looking at her now? Naruto had only just noticed that Sasuke had gone over to Sakura's side and had decided to send his clones after them. Sasuke had been standing near her for a good ten seconds and he only just noticed…

_Geez…and here I thought all these men who had the benefit of going to the Academy would be able to fight without using a hand sign. What the hell do they teach them? Are all men this stupid?_

**Hopefully not…but there's no telling until training starts.**

Her muscle memory kicked in while Naruto's clone ran to her. She leapt upwards as a Naruto clone came after her and while gravity overtook her body she palmed a kunai and killed the clone. She then honed in on the real Naruto amongst all of the other ones, and using some air to push herself to him, landed in front of him while forcing the earth up and locking his hands behind his back. Then to add flavor, she kicked his sorry ass into a nearby tent.

* * *

"Oof!" He got pushed back far enough into a large red tent with a banner on it. Sakura smiled and used the earth that was still on Naruto to bind him tight, rendering him immobile.

"AAGH! Damn it you fucking Haruno!"

When the dust cleared, he noticed the red interior of the tent he was in, and turned around to see his mentor Hatake Kakashi, father and General of the army Namikaze Minato, and one Uchiha Itachi all staring at him with blank faces.

"It wasn't my fault! I swear! It's all that Haruno's fault! That puny bastard's the one who threw me in here! I swear!"

"Naruto…quiet down," Minato rubbed his forehead gently while staring at his bound son. Really when was he going to become more observant and slow to anger. _He's just like his mother…_

"Who is this Haruno you talk about?" Itachi asked. Surely Haruno-san would not be petty enough as to rile a rookie recruit.

Naruto turned slightly to look, "Hi there Itachi…er…sorry…Uchiha-taichou. It's this short guy with…well he's a short guy!"

"That is strange Minato-sama," Kakashi mused.

"Hmm? How so?"

"The Haruno I know is quite a statuesque man, even after being retired from ANBU. It would be impossible for him to be called short."

"Maybe he has a son then?" Minato offered.

"Well, I did not see him yesterday. Perhaps we should go out and put a stop to another untimely interruption," Kakashi gave a pointed look at Naruto who only smiled a little ashamed.

"Go ahead and greet the men. I'm going to undo Naruto first," Minato squatted down next to his son and began studying the binding, "Hmmm, this is rather hard to undo...that boy is quite good. To be able to form a net this detailed and complicated. Not to mention the complicated sealing methods and to do it so quickly. Well it seems we have some good talent among the rookie ranks." The blonde General smiled as he continued to examine the bind put on his son.

* * *

Hatake Kakashi was not an easily surprised man. However, the very scene before him was one he could not have predicted as he walked out of the tent and surveyed the scene.

Outside the eating area in the main courtyard were a swarm of Naruto clones who were intent on trying to land a hit on a smaller…man? The clones had multiplied themselves till the point that the only a few places were left untouched. It was just too much orange for his eyes, honestly, he still didn't understand his student's obsession with the color. Not only that it was almost slightly embarrassing to see his student chase one young man around the entire courtyard and not land a single hit on him. The other men of the army were either creating a perimeter so the fight would not extend to the other parts of camp or watching from a tree that had not been there mere hours ago. Said tree happened to be at least three times bigger than the usual tree found in these parts of the country. Obviously someone placed it there, Sasuke? Maybe Neji? Did they even know such a complex genjutsu that could actually hold the weight of a real man? In any case the tree wasn't important…what was though was the small man with dirty blonde hair running easy laps around the rest of the clones.

What he found interesting was the small man was weaving seamlessly through the clones using small illusions to cover his movements, making it harder for the Naruto clones to predict his movements. That alone was impressive but even to add on top of that, the young man was throwing small water bullets at the clones making them disperse. Naruto kept trying to compensate for the losses by creating more clones. Really? He knew more than clone jutsus why wasn't he thinking smarter? Probably because that guy pissed him off and he wanted to beat him with his own hands. That was the only logical conclusion that Kakashi could come up with. Luckily, one of the clones finally managed to smack the young man and he burst into a swirl of leaves.

Wait a minute…leaves? Damn it. Had he gotten caught in a genjutsu and one that was obviously more complex then the small movement concealing ones he was tossing around earlier. Kami why hadn't he noticed sooner…

Itachi walked out surveyed the scene and instantly knew a large scale genjutsu was being used. He watched the debacle for three seconds before a small amount of irritation grew inside of him. This was training camp for war, not the damned Academy were brawling was an everyday occurrence. He quickly ended the genjutsu once the young man disappeared into a swirl of leaves. "Sasuke...what is the meaning of this?"

Everyone blinked when the illusion was broken and the thirty Naruto clones disappeared instantly from the courtyard. The tree was also empty save for one occupant…the young dirty blonde haired man.

"Naruto got pissed off at him," Sasuke pointed to the guy in the tree, "And tried to teach him a lesson."

Itachi's eyes narrowed flashing to the accused. Sakura met his stunning onyx eyes and could tell she was being summoned. So she jumped easily from the tree and walked over towards her superiors. Unfortunately that meant walking toward Hatake Kakashi…whom she now loathed with every fiber of her being.

Uchiha-san," Sakura bowed in respect before glancing at Kakashi, "Hatake. Don't blame Sasuke for not stopping things. He was put under his own illusion."

"Haruno-san," Kakashi spoke up folding his arms, he was rather irritated with his blatant lack of respect towards him while Itachi received it, "Do you have no respect for all your commanding officers?"

"Forgive me Hatake. I only give respect to those who deserve it. And being the perverted bastard that you are, you deserve none of my respect."

The surrounding crowd gasped. They couldn't believe some new kid just insulted one of the most talented and powerful men in all of Fire Country. Was he insane? The Hyuuga stepped up to her and she flinched as he whispered in her ear.

"I would not advise you to make enemies so soon newbie. He is one of the top mentors in the academy and has far more experience than you think."

Sakura instantly shot him back a few steps with a quick blast of air, "Just like I told Sasuke, _Neji_, I like my personal space…remember that. And like I said before I only show respect to those who deserve it."

"Have I somehow offended you boy? And I do not even know your name." Kakashi was trying to stay civil, mostly because he was curious as to how he earned such a terrible reputation with someone he had never met before.

Sakura fixed him with a venomous glare, "My name is Haruno Seito, and I'm brother to the girl you made strip yesterday."

"Ah…so that is why you are angered I suppose?"

"No, no…you have gotten it wrong. Angered maybe a little bit, but vengeful…most definitely yes."

Kakashi narrowed his eyes at the veiled threat. He was impressed that this thin, short looking young man had the balls to glare at him particularly never taking his eyes off him. He could definitely admire it except for the fact that he was being completely disrespectful to him. Oh well…he did disrespect his sister, his anger is very warranted. He will just have to make it up to him somehow.

Itachi chose this time to intervene, "You were not present yesterday at the gathering, why?"

"You weren't there either Uchiha-san, at least that was according to my father's report."

"Then pray tell where were you?" Kakashi asked.

And Minato walked out at the exact moment with a strangely quiet Naruto in tow.

"Haruno-san, are you refusing to answer the questions of your superiors. Not to mention you are acting very insubordinate which I will warn you now is not tolerated among these ranks."

"Minato-sama," Sakura bowed low in respect, "It is my pleasure to meet you." She had only heard good things about this man.

"I must say, you are quite adept at causing a ruckus aren't you?"

"Yes, I am quite skilled at it, I suppose."

"Well, do you mind releasing my boy?" he gestured to the subdued blonde behind him. Naruto wouldn't meet her gaze which she found mildly amusing.

"I don't mind…but perhaps you can advise him on his temper? It is not wise to be unbridled in a time like this Namikaze-san."

Minato smirked, "Yes you are quite right. Now, Haruno-san, now would be a time as good as any."

"Yes sir." With a quick tugging of chakra, the earth coils around Naruto turned into dust.

Sakura was quite pleased that she was able to give the grey-haired pig a small taste of his own medicine. Even though she knew her insubordination would probably warrant a harsh reprimand it would have been totally worth it. And for the next few days of training she would go all out on any spare she had with him. He'd be a fool to underestimate her

What a pleasure it had been to try out a new technique, those earth coils worked like a charm. She had decided to use all of her techniques with her amazing control, and with this one, had purposely upped her level of control just to bind the weaves together. She had then performed a few mixes of lightning fast seals, simple one really, she had merely braided and layered them one over the other. All the while, she was sending her chakra into three directions whilst pulling earth and water at the same time. Basically once the jutsu was complete it was nigh unbreakable. It had taken her three months to perfect doing that while fighting at least three of her father's puppets. He was obviously her target for the coils.

Well back to the matter at hand. The vile pervert, she rather liked calling the Hatake that, was busy scrutinizing her along with the very sexy but blank-looking Uchiha and a gorgeous but sadly married and somewhere around thirty something Minato. Not to mention they were all in her personal space..._how annoying!_

And was that blasted younger Uchiha and Hyuuga Neji talking about her? The fluctuations in the air sure seemed like it! She breathed heavily, inadvertently sending some air up her hair, lifting the strands around her face away momentarily. She also saw fit to send a piercing glare their way to they stopped their not so discrete whispering.

How long was she going to have to put up with this? For an indefinite amount of time? Troublesome was certainly an understatement to describe her situation.

"I'm very impressed Haruno-san," Minato praised as he watched the coils fade into dust, "That was three elements in one."

"Hai Minato-sama," Sakura smirked lightly, "My father trained me well."

Minato nodded, "Now I do believe we were going to hear about you before I walked out of my tent."

Sakura understood a subtle order when she heard one. She would disrespect that vile pervert as long as she could but she could never do the same to this man, "Yes sir. I'm a couple years younger than my sister but I was born with many great abilities. My father kept me at home since he was retired so that I could advance quickly in my studies. The caravans were having some troubles with bandits along the roads so instead of hiring other to protect them, he trained me. I'm not seen much around the village because I spend most of my time on the roads as the lone guardian for our silk products. Since I've started working for him every single attack on our caravans end in bloody deaths to those attacking."

Minato nodded again, "I see you look quite young are you even of age to be here?"

Sakura's eyes narrowed slightly, "My age is of no importance. I will _not_ let my crippled father go to war where he will lose his life. For all the service he provided for the village as an ANBU he deserves to live the rest of his life with his wife and daughter. I am perfectly capable of serving in his stead"

"You still didn't answer the question Haruno-san," Kakashi pointed out.

"What's it to you Hatake?"

"Haruno-san," Minato intervened, "I'm going to say this once, the next time you show anything but respect for your superiors it will warrant a punishment. Even one such as you with great talent is not above following orders."

Sakura held her tongue knowing that she had officially reached his patience level, "Hai Minato-sama, it won't happen again."

* * *

Uchiha Itachi, was for the most part, quite bewildered. However, it only showed through a very tiny and minuscule clenching of the jaw. Even Hatake had not noticed.

He had been discussing battle strategies with the honored Namikaze Minato and the man who had lowered himself quite a bit in his eyes since yesterday. As much as Itachi could understand why his superior had done so, and as much as his heart had been racing to the point of stopping, he still considered it wrong to do as such to a girl. Especially to the girl he was so very interested in…not that he knew…but it's the principle of the matter. No woman should have been subjected to that.

But then the blonde-haired knuckle-headed boy had been pushed in among a flurry of dust and dirt. The dirt and dust had then proceeded to come alive and tie the boy together. That lead to them going out and to him finding out that the highly esteemed Minato-sama actually could not do anything about releasing the binding. He had been trained to never assume anything but he could not help but think that a man who could cause Minato-sama to have trouble with a technique would be a much more stately man.

Instead he got a rather small man who was shorter than even the shortest of the group, not to mention an incredibly impulsive and stupid one. He was talented yes, and Itachi had watched him wield three of the five elements and once all at the same time creating those impenetrable bindings. Jutsu's like that took amazing control.

He watched the man's every move and noticed, with some form of admiration that every single movement was deliberate and calculated. What he found strange was the way the man seemed to flinch with reflex when another man came close to him. Despite the fact he claimed to like his personal space he found it rather odd that he would be so on guard around members of the same sex.

The man had dirty blonde hair that was pulled back into a short ponytail at the nape of his neck with some bangs hanging near his face and very full and pouty lips. How and why he had noticed this. He did not want to know.

He seemed very angered towards Hatake and when he found out that he was in fact, the brother of one Haruno Sakura that was forever on his mind since...all day yesterday he understood his anger perfectly. It mimicked his own.

It had already gotten Itachi thinking. Perhaps he could act a mite friendlier to the boy. And perhaps he could offer him some more guidance? Not that it seemed like he needed it. Even when the boy had been confronting the Hatake had he seemed afraid, it had seemed more like a righteous sort of anger. Righteous to a point that it was as if the boy had experienced it! But that was impossible for him to be Sakura in disguise… there were no scars on both her…_his_ hands, and he smelt like a man. Walked around like one too…but still there was something that he couldn't quite put his finger on. Maybe it's because he hadn't met him before.

The man walked and talked like he was the general around here, but at the same time, he seemed so free and pleased, like a child walking from its crib for the first time. It was particularly strange. He had shown no humility whatsoever and had proceeded to quite happily insult his strategizer and advisor, had Minato-sama not come out he was certain the man would have used some extremely choice…or rather improper words. Itachi knew their confrontation was far from over. He could expect more of the similar attitude for training this entire week.

He noticed how he bristled when he saw the Hyuuga and his younger brother's lips move while looking at the boy. He seemed as though he knew what they were saying. It would be a first for someone to have such good hearing without him detecting chakra in the person's ears. This talented shinobi will be a great addition to the ranks.

Whatever it was about him Itachi concluded it was because he simply didn't know him. And hopefully through more contact and socializing this uneasy feeling would go away to be replaced with something different. Friendship, kinship…anything. Then maybe he could use this new relationship to get closer to his sister.

* * *

**Ta-da...only one more chapter then it's all my original writing :) I'm kinda excited. and just a reminder i HAVE consulted with the original author for her ideas and such and she basically told me to run with it. So i am! I'm really excited for the next few chapter and i hope you are as well.**

**Ok so an explanation...For one I'M PREGNANT AGAIN! I'm so excited! For those of you that know it's been about 7 months since i lost my first one so my husband and i are super excited for another new addition :) But just like last time the baby comes with morning sickness and unfortunately it lasts all damn day...ugh...i swear this part sucks but i'm excited for my baby. Also i'm almost finished with my internship this is the last month so i'm cranking on everything to get it done ASAP. **

**For those who didn't read my profile i also had no computer for almost the entire month of July. i got it back this last week then went of vacation and now here's is the newest update!**

**Other story updates: Becoming One: I'm almost finished with Chapter 26 i've written and rewritten probably a million times b/c i want to get it right. i hope ya'll like the effort i put into it. Because it's taking me forever! Vitality of Sakura: i'm about halfway done writing that then i have to send it to Katherine then we will post it :) Hmmmmm yup that's it for updates. Look for Becoming One update soon :)**


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